Esa Juhani Ruoho, 26.10.1978, Finnish born and bred.
The profile introducing Esa Ruoho, aka Lakluster, taken
from the artist website, couldn’t more to the
point. At just twenty-four, Ruoho is already a veteran
of the electronic music scene, yet he has remained relatively
unknown until now. This first release for American label
Merck could well change everything. Already responsible
for a string of remixes for artists such as Leafcutter
John, Marumari or label mate Machinedrum, Ruoho
has released four albums since 1999. With two albums
for UK label defocus in two years and one for U-Cover,
Ruoho is one of the most promising new artists to come
out of Finland.
Ruoho’s interest for electronic sounds started
at the tender age of six, when he developed an interest
for the music of C64 and Amiga games. Progressively
switching to ambient and the then almost-meaningful
IDM movement during the mid-nineties, Ruoho released
his first MP3s in 1998, with his first CDR album, simply
called CDR#2 released on internet label Monotonik,
before being snapped by deFocus for his next effort,
Container, a year later. As more of his work
started to appear on various compilations, Ruoho released
two albums in 2001, one under his own name (Spaces
– U-Cover) and his second for deFocus (Wrapping).
Although Ruoho has collaborated with Merck in the past
with a series of EPs, Showcase is his first
full-length offer on the Miami-based label. Has its
title indicates, this album showcases some of Ruoho’s
work, in this particular case recorded between 1999
and 2001.
The striking thing with the nineteen compositions featured
on this album is the wide range of sonic ambiences and
genres, from the shapeless formation of interferences
of the opening track, ironically called Tuneful
to the classic electronica of the concluding track.
Interestingly, there are a great number of untitled
tracks here, simply identified by a date, a constant
in Ruoho’s work pretty much since the early days.
Sometimes associated with the seminal Artificial
Intelligence series for his melodic approach to
sonic environments, Eas Ruoho has certainly defined
his own way of arranging beautiful soundscapes. Using
relatively straightforward beat patterns as a basis
for his compositions, he focuses on progressive sounds
to create the primary structures of his creations, and
then adds more subtle sources until each composition
becomes utterly unique. From the hypnotic LL12 B3
Machine Drum and Haloaw to the sumptuous
landscapes of LL7 07/05/00 and Mes,
this album forever entertains and captivates.
Perfect introduction to the sound of Lackluster, Showcase
offers an interesting overview of his work during his
first two years as a recognised recording artist. If
since, his sound has become slightly more ambient at
times, it still retains the energy of these tracks.
Esa Ruoho’s constant effort at creating beautiful
soundscapes and arranging them in his own particular
way pays off on this outstanding collection of classic
electronica.
4.7/5 |
