Steinvord
trades in fast-moving soundscapes. Behind the percussive elements lies a large
blob of sound, pulsing. Unfortunately upon giving this a few listens, I got the
impression of staleness. Yes, I know this got released only a few weeks ago, yet
there’s a lingering sense that I’ve heard this all before. Perhaps if this
piece had come out in the late 90s/early 00s I might feel a bit different. The
main problem is all the hallmarks of IDM are here but nothing new is done with
any of them. It pains me to say this as I grew up heavily on IDM and love a ‘retro’
take on the genre. However Steinvord’s EP doesn’t possess enough of a
personality to keep me coming back.
‘Backyard’
begins the little EP. Those snare hits have become so commonplace by now. Even
the little flourishes of melody are somewhat predictable. One can tell
Steinvord is trying to overwhelm us with sound. He wants to be a Venetian
Snares almost, yet can’t seem to muster up the energy or creative drum
patterns. These patterns have been used to death over the past decade, up to
the point of becoming a cliché. ‘Maelstrom’, one of the less beat-centered
pieces, tries for a more contemplative sound. But ultimately it too sounds
tired, using gimmicks like far-away samples and distortion synthesizer.
There
are some acid-influenced pieces on here too. Compared with some of Rephlex’s
other artists (like The Tuss for example) the acid attacks fall flat. It sounds
predictable. And still those beats are extremely boring. Weirdly, had Steinvord
used a more conventional drum beat, it might have had a greater impact on me.
That’s the main problem. The ‘Steinvord EP’ is purposeless high energy.
Venetian Snares sounds like a talentless hack running a lot of different uncohesive sounds through a 16th rigid grid on a tracker compared to Steinvord. He cuts and edits the breaks with great taste, reminiscent of the drum and bass genius of early Photek, combined with sound manipulation techniques similar to Squarepusher and Aphex Twin. This review is as bad as the ones done on Druqks back in the day. It's funny how people simply fail to discern whats good, average and bad in the IDM genre. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI don't hear any influence of Squarepusher at all or Aphex Twin (Aphex Twin injects a great deal more personality in his creations, and Squarepusher has more style). Steinvord sounds extremely stale to me. Part of the reason I like Venetian Snares is due to the sheer messiness. at least Venetian Snares does something new. Steinvord doesn't explore any new territory at all. It sounds like so many other sub-par IDM Aphex Twin wannabes.
ReplyDelete"I don't hear any influence of Squarepusher at all or Aphex Twin"
Delete"Venetian Snares does something new"
I don't think so, Tim. If you can't hear influences of AFX and Squarepusher on this thing (not all, some) and you think a monkey running Glitch VST over some dull beats is good because "it's something new" you potrait yourself as another lost music reviewer in the dense world that is "IDM", guided by motions and ears that lack subtlety enough to process sound designed with good taste. But then again you did an analysis based on a bad vinyl rip (no, you didn't buy it).
If you can't discern the average myspace AFX wannabe from the Steinvord material you are objectively untalented for this and I recommend you another duty.
We disagree. I'm happy with that. I don't love Venetian Snares. I simply prefer it over this EP which I didn't enjoy.
DeleteI used to listen to more IDM. I don't listen to as much anymore. The genre started repeating itself too many times. That's simply me. You're free to disagree of course.
There are bands out there that do represent 'good taste' to me. I adore SND. Their attention to sound is meticulous. Other bands off of the Raster Noton, Warp, and Spectrum Spools labels also show this same attention to sound and beauty.
I like how you say I'm objectively untalented for reviewing. Would you give me a 5.0 or a 3.6 in terms of reviewing ability? Reviewing albums (or EPs in this case) isn't an art form. I enjoy a lot of music. Sometimes I don't enjoy it. That's fine. Note this entire blog is a little tongue in cheek. I'm not taking myself too seriously. This is a passion project.
What makes me happy is the fact you keep on coming back. That shows me that my negative reviews have value as well. I think I'll do more of them after seeing this exchange. Normally people don't comment on my music reviews so this shows I at least 'hit a nerve' with this one. Sometimes I wonder if anybody reads. Happy someone does.
You're clearly passionate about music Enmanuelle. If you want to recommend some albums to me I welcome it. You seem like an extremely nice person, well-versed in IDM, and if you think there's an album I should check out, please let me know.