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Review:
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In my continuing exploration of the musical
genre known as IDM, i tracked down a copy of this disc, which
is supposed to be one of the masterpieces of the genre. Or maybe
not. Someone recommended it to me, so i spent some time finding
it.
Ultramarin is a strange mix of hard, danceable
rave beats, wierd glitch type noises, deep head bobbing bass
riffs, and ambient drones. For a while i just found it bland.
I would put it on, don my headphones, and sit down to write.
And it worked fine as background music: a little too minimal
at times to drown out the din of cubical conversation, but mostly
pleasant.
Then one day i was stressed out. I don't remember why: too
much coffee and arguing with some yutz in a suit over what a
browser can and cannot do is probably the reason. Anyway, i
was stressed out, so i sit down and put on Ultramarin.
It's minimal ambient tones relaxed me, and i found myself calming
down. Which was a great effect, and wonderfully helpful.
Since then, i have gone back to listen to this many times,
and i now find that i enjoy it. Jetone is like a minimalistic
Mouse on Mars: the songs have
that same glitchy beats with glowing keyboards kind of thing
going on, only the music is sparser. Sometimes it's too sparse,
so that if i am in the mood for something energetic, this album
actively bores me.
But still, there are some nice moments. Specifically, things
pick up on Phoedra IV. Up until this song, Ultramarin
was almost ambient, but Phoedra IV has a deep, thudding
rave rhythm. It creates a steady monotony, like a mantra, allowing
you to focus on one thing while keys and glitchy noises circle
the beat. The next track Thousand Oaks is a variation
on that same theme, only here the backbone is a spiraling bass
riff. Again, strange IDM noises circle the bass riff, and Jetone
adds a funky little drum beat. It's a really good and catchy
song.
Otherwise, the album varies between ambient noise and good
glitch. It's well done laptop music. So -- if you like that
sort of stuff check this out. If, however, the thought of a
laptop as an instrument annoys you, then this probably isn't
for you. |
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