Before his untimely passing last year at the age of 34, Finnish electronic producer Kristo Tuomi (aka Roshi, Japanese for teacher/master) was deeply involved in Finland’s music scene for much of the preceding decade, having a hand in projects such as The Jar and Stealth Unit Sound Collective. Despite his prolific production history however, this posthumously released self-titled Roshi album on Exogenic Breaks represents his debut full-length solo release, and sees Tuomi crafting an eclectic breaks-centred collection that adeptly shifts between nu skool breaks, electro and overdriven rock with a degree of skill that’s matched by few other producers currently operating amongst the breaks scene. There’s also a distinctly gothy undertone bubbling just beneath the surface of almost all the tracks here.
Epic opening track ‘Revolution 2009’ unfurls itself from the kind of grandiose, synthetic orchestral fanfare that would put the likes of Orbital to shame, shortly before locking down into dark throbbing synths and punching electro rhythms that call to mind Blackstrobe’s electro-biker excursions given a distinctly more breakbeat-centred edge. From there, ‘Loading Zone’ slams straight into electro-edged rock that sits somewhere between NIN-esque percussive aggression and Queens Of The Stone Age’s seductive purr as it winds a crawling live bassline around bursts of synthetic noise and chugging, processed guitars, before ‘It’s All Good?’ slides in huge, chunky digitally-processed synth tones ala Boys Noize / Modeselektor into the mix.
While for the most part the focus remains upon moody, club-centric breaks / house / electro grooves however, there’s certainly a few unexpected surprises packed in along the way in the form of ‘Shinken’s sudden descent down into meticulously sculpted darkstep drum and bass, and ‘Mirror’s sidestep into midtempo hiphop, complete with Redrama adding his MC vocals to a murky backdrop of wailing theremins and distinctly fifties-styled guitar chords. All in all, it’s fair to say that Tuomi’s debut album as Roshi goes a long way towards re-invigorating the increasingly uninspiring breaks genre, and the fact that it’s his first and final solo release makes it both frustrating and poignant.
Chris Downton
