Piecing together music from a particular location is a curious task. By its very nature it affords a sort of coherence to each act, simply because they share a geographical boundary. On Manoeuvres 2, the common link across this collection of ten songs is the locale of their creators, Vancouver. It is a valiant effort to try and chronicle the sound of a city – even in this limited guise – when the individual artists are so very different.
There is little doubt as to why Alektronic’s ‘Drone 420′ was chosen to open the album. A smooth, if slightly narcoleptic progression through trip-hop influenced beats would sound overly simple if it weren’ for the measured, hypnotic tempo. Effortless and so very subtle in its execution. Immediately after comes Tomas Jirku’s ‘To Sleep at Sunrise’ which starts inconspicuously enough, turning into a slow, ebbing rhythm as the beat bubbles to the surface. It’s a curious choice to include it so early on in the piece, as it feels utterly influenced by that particularly European strain of minimal techno. Gavin Froome’s bass-heavy ‘Plain Jane’ makes Jirku’s inclusion seem even more out of place – but interestingly enough, all the more memorable for it.
For all the pleasant moments amidst this album, it feels as if the collection is imbued with a distinct sense of nostalgia. Whilst this might have been unintentional from the selector’ point of view, it is undoubtedly there in the track progression – the defiant, almost acid-house female vocal on Christer’s ‘How You Like It’s segues into the mid-90s lounge feel of Fauxliage’s ‘Vibing’ after Calamalka’s brief flirtation with dub. These cuts sound like a product of a particular time rather than of a particular location, which works against the premise of Manoeuvres 2 more than anything else. Yet despite these misgivings, there is comfort in familiarity – even if innovation has to take a back-seat for the time being.
Alexandra Savvides
