It's as if the more you listen to analogue techno, lesser elements you want from its productions.
But with the amount of dusty analogue beats currently being produced, it almost counteracts the bemoaned digital mouse-clicking productions of the Ableton, Logic and Native instruments alumni.
So before any kind of analogue backlash reaches full swing, fuelled by Facebook's status hounds and Twitter's serial tweeters run for the e-neo-ethical high ground, lets enjoy a second hit from Raw Series, another ambiguous and hand stamped white label shrouded in the to be expected veil of anonymity.
Nothing in Raw Series 02 is groundbreaking, nor is it mind-blowing - but it is functional, it is stripped, it is analogue and it is well produced.
The A-side is typically techno with a kick-snare intro, customary 909 hi-hats follow and on cue rustic dubby-chord stabs enter, slightly developing overtime in harmony with a softer second reverberating synth shot.
On the flip the B-side opts for broken drums, creating a syncopated groove that is partnered with skippy shakers and pacey 909 hats.
Dubby stabs again feature only to receive more of a filter treatment with particular emphasis on the the first beat of each bar.
Dubby stabs again feature only to receive more of a filter treatment with particular emphasis on the the first beat of each bar.
Those who have been following Non Series and Psyk, or those who subscribe to the "just a drum machine and a synth" Raw Series concept, should add this 12" to their arsenal of analogue DJ-tools.
Would have been more interesting if they added at least one bass synth to their apparatus. For me this catalog does not stand out against the path of Frozen Border and labels alike.
ReplyDeleteB-side programmming really needs some work from a drummer perspective, way to mechanical.
The Raw Series concept is "just a drum machine and a synth", which explains the lack of bassline.
ReplyDeleteI debated whether to feature the release, but went with it as it typifies a certain brand of analogue techno being made at the moment.
True, the release may not be as seminal as the early Frozen Border/Horizontal Ground works, but it is good dancefloor fodder.
I think in series 02 they pulled it off. The synth and drum arrangement omit the need for a bassline as they carry a swinging groove. For me, series 01 didnt seem to have the same effect.
ReplyDelete"So before any kind of analogue backlash reaches full swing, fuelled by Facebook's status hounds and Twitter's serial tweeters run for the e-neo-ethical high ground[...]"
ReplyDeleteOne of the best sentences I've read in a review in awhile! :)