Despite its simple cover, the latest release from Melbourne’s The Atlas Room aka Ezekiel Kigbo Jr, contains a melting pot of electronic sounds, ranging from minimal and ambient, to techno and trip-hop.
Opener ‘Space/Time’ is awash with calming synth drones whilst elastic drum patterns bring a tension that never quite resolves until the track bleeds into ‘Physika’. Introducing a stuttering beat that reminds of Massive Attack, distorted digital sounds overtake the track for something all together more chilled.
Elsewhere, the bass heavy centrepiece ‘Projection: I’ begins quietly and builds up with slowly pulsating drums and humming synths to produce something not dissimilar to the sounds found in Porter Ricks’ music. It’s still firmly in the ambient genre, but the fact that it’s great to run to should give you an idea of how surprisingly muscular this thing is.
Whilst UnderCurrents feels of the moment, Kigbo never seems like he is superficially trying to keep up with trends. Clocking in at just over twenty-five minutes, its is a cohesive and marvelously immersive album that demands beginning-to-end listening, with Kigbo giving these songs the room they need to breathe. It is available now from The Atlas Room’s bandcamp: http://theatlasroom.bandcamp.com/releases
Wyatt Lawton-Masi
