(02.17.06) Vote for Pedro.
As more and more musicians step into the electronic genre, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for them to become standouts. That’s why some artists like James Rutledge, aka Pedro, are taking electronica out of the box. Pedro’s first full-length release, a 2-CD set titled Pedro on Mush Records, is a trip into territory that is still relatively fresh on the electronic front.
Instead of mixing and layering sounds that smoothly blend for a seamless loop, Pedro creates a juicy, stuttered effect with his music. Soft and lush bloom into hard and industrial, then into hip-hop, breakbeats, or a blast of horns.
It’s slightly reminiscent of John Zorn’s Naked City –a lot of sounds pieced together like non-sequiturs. It shouldn’t work; it should be distracting or disjointed. But Pedro’s skills weave the gentle with the abrasive for tracks that offer a new way to listen.
Pedro’s skills have earned him critical nods and support from respected artists. The second CD in the set, titled Fear and Resilience, features seven remixes of the same-titled song, helmed by the likes of Danger Mouse, Four Tet and Prefuse 73. Each track has a distinctly different flavor, but it is the solid foundation of Pedro’s music that gives them backbone.
These days, it seems that just throwing together smooth grooves sprinkled with clips from other musician’s works earns a label of electronica. Pedro, on the other hand, is taking the genre into realms that are refreshingly different, if not abstract–eclectronica, maybe. Instead of the usual downtempo-been-there-done-that, he offers a collage of sound that gives you something to chew on. He hasn’t reinvented the wheels of electronica. He’s just spinning them in a different direction.
Pedro is out now on Mush.
