Polish downtempo electronic music producer An On Bast (real name Anna Suda) has previously released two albums of what she describes as ‘delicate synthetic music’, beginning with her self-released debut Welcome Scissors and followed by her follow-up Happy-Go-Lucky on Polish netlabel Etalabel, both of which emerged within a few months of one another during 2006 and were swiftly followed up by Suda’s participation at that year’s Red Bull Music Conference in Melbourne. Two years on, this seven track EP Words Are Dead represents Suda’s first release through the UK-based Rednetic label and certainly finds her delicate synthetic soundscapes in good company with that label’s overriding leanings towards atmospheric downbeat IDM. Opening track ‘Permissum Sulum’ beautifully sets the scene with its deep, dubbed-out bass pulses and droning harmonic tones providing a lush counterpoint for the whirl of hyper-detailed breakbeats and harsh electronic noise artefacts that pepper the higher end of the mix – the entire combination evoking an atmosphere that’s similar to the on-board systems of a satellite periodically making adjustments as it floats through space.
‘Foible’ meanwhile opens with subtle piano tones ringing out over a blissfully optimistic wash of sweeping harmonics, but before long, clicking electronic rhythms begin to writhe insistently out of the cracks, gradually shifting the entire track up in tempo until it reaches a dubbed-out minimal trajectory that hints at Vadislav Delay’s more introspective moments. While there’s certainly plenty of ‘delicate synthetic music’ on offer amongst Words Are Dead’s seven tracks, the flexing, dancefloor-inspired rhythms are never really too far from the surface, and certainly emerge explicitly on strong moments such as ‘Sth Important’s juddering fusion of headstrong, hiphop-informed beat programming, eerie cut-up vocal samples and contemplative analogue synth tones. Well worth investigating.
Chris Downton
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