Inspired by sci-fi pulp writer HP Lovecraft, The Starry Wisdom EP by gritty Glasgow producer The Village Orchestra (Ruaridh Law) sinks further into the low-end mire with six tracks of broken, and not so broken, dancefloor workouts.
The grainy waves of ‘I Can Hear The Sirens Again’ have been replaced by fearsome, wonky rhythms and disorienting synth webs, Law working on the retro bass music of Sheffield and rave, with nods to long-time influences Mille Plateaux and Force Inc. There’s a tightly wound menace to the jerky 4/4 of ‘Arkham, mass’ reminiscent of Rechenzentrum, as with ‘Aklo Cut With Saffron’, which soon spirals into something altogether bolder and less predictable, more like a British Pom Pom. Other pieces seem more well-suited to nocturnal car journeys; ‘The King in Yellow’ drips gleaming tones against a gentle motorik chug, while ‘Non-Euclydian’ rips into Mantronix electro via Roman Flugel, spitting Chipmunk vocals into meaningless chunks over a bleeting 2-step thud.
Joshua Meggitt
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