In
the constant flow of new records coming out, it is easy
to focus on the wider releases to the detriment of interesting
work published on small structures. This is very much
the case of this first Secret Agent Gel album, issued
last year on New York-based Opiate Records. If not an
entirely revolutionary record, P As In Peter… is
nevertheless brilliantly put together, and offers a rather
interesting take on a variety of slightly divergent sections
of electronica.
A web designer for a medical school in New York by day,
Corey Maass turns into a laptop maverick by night. Following
the release of a mini album compilation in 2000, Maass
developed a stage act reaching far beyond the usual realm
of laptop music. Involving lights, costumes and visual
art, his music has become an element of a wider project.
A New-Yorker by adoption – he moved to Harlem two
years ago – Maass, whose influences range from Depeche
Mode to Aphex Twin and Underworld to Bola, has taken his
incongruous circus from art galleries and clubs to more
usual venues including the legendary CBGB.
P As In Peter… is a collection of minimal
electronica tainted of drum’n’bass and DSP
deployed over fifteen tracks concentrated in just forty
minutes. Kicking off with a single bouncing noise on Fan
Blades Failing, the album soon moves to more elaborated
territories with the assertive beat and filtered waves
of Make For A New Space. The track evolves in
a strangely static fashion, with its repetitive melody
fading in and out of the scope at regular intervals, leaving
the drum machine and bleeps to maintain the momentum.
The track, by far one of the most straightforward moment
of this record, is reminiscent of early 90s Detroit techno
in the way it is shaped by its rhythmic components and
morphing sonic landscapes. Elsewhere, Maass delves into
the darkest corners of electronica to bring contrasting
elements together, juxtaposing sheer aggression with calm
analogue waves, static noises and processed found sounds,
or highly mechanical structures and vocal samples, alienating
minimal melodies by combining convulsive rhythmic patters,
moody bass lines and distorted noises. By weaving his
tracks tightly together and creating extremely intricate
structures, Maass allows very little time for the mind
to get round the compositions, constantly firing new ideas
and propelling them in and out of the soundscape without
warning. This gives P As In Peter… an intense
feeling or urgency, strangely reminiscent of the buzzing
hive that is New York itself.
With this first album, Corey Maass finds himself on territories
explored previously by the likes of Autechre, Freeform
or Speedy J. P As In Peter… is hugely interesting
in the way Maass processes sounds and uses rhythmic elements
to create a strangely beautiful and appealing piece of
work.
4/5 |
