RICHARD H. KIRK
Fear (No Evil)
DUSTV009
12”
Dust Science Recordings 2006

Richard H. Kirk’s contribution to electronic music over the last thirty years is considerable. Whether as part of pioneering act Cabaret Voltaire or under one of his many pseudonyms, he has pushed the boundaries of the genre and created a variety of new sub-genres. One of the most influential artists of his era, Kirk has not only contributed greatly to the democratisation of electronic music and helped it becoming a genre to reckon with, but he has also inspired the electronica scene of the last fifteen years.

Always at the forefront of electronic music, it is no surprise to see him join the Dust Science stable for this one-off release. Based in his hometown of Sheffield, Dust Science, the self-professed home of Northern Electronic Soul, have, in the last year, created something of a stir on the techno and electronic scenes with releases from The Black Dog, Claude Young, Carl Taylor or System 23.

Fear (No Evil) collects four very different tracks, ranging from blissful bleep-tronica a la Sweet Exocist (Toned) to dark and dirty groove (BN2) to exotica (Casa NC Dada) to greasy electro-funk (Fear (No Evil)). In fact, this EP sounds something of a condensed version of Kirk’s career.

Kicking off with the obsessive beat and bleep of Toned, Kirk asserts from the start the resolutely upbeat character of this EP. Bearing the hallmark of vintage electronica, this wouldn’t have looked out of place on the original Sweet Exorcist album. Casa NC Dada, which follows, takes a totally different path. Betraying Kirk’s fascination for dub and African music without ever actually incorporating any clear element of either, this track imperceptibly builds up on its catchy rhythmic section. Found somewhere between traditional Latin dance and tribalism, with constant influx of groove and hypnotic loops, this track is perhaps one of Kirk’s best tracks of recent years.

Fear (No Evil) is fierce and sleek; a well-grease-up groove machine. There is something utterly mechanical in this piece, and the residue of industrial beats contributes to make this piece stink like a car repair shop. The beat is not overpowering by a long shot, but its relentless drive, coupled with the constant electronic sub-layers makes this another storming offer.

This EP closes with the much friendlier and more approachable BN2. With its funky tune, linear bass and injections of various electronic noises, this track clearly owes to the Detroit Lords, as if Kirk was taking the opportunity of this rapid passage on Dust Science to pay homage to the American pioneers of the groove.

Kirk is a man of many incarnations, and this EP only has enough space for a handful of them. Fear (No Evil) doesn’t only acts as a platform for Kirk, but also, and perhaps mainly, sees him endorse the work of the label.

VIZIER OF DAMASCUS
Badshahi
RN006
CDS
Rednetic Recordings 2005

Behind the truly refined and evocative name of Vizier Of Damascus hides Arfan Munir Ezra Rai, a twenty-four year old lecturer in philosophy from London, and this is his first release for Rednetic. The nine tracks of this EP were recorded over a period of two years during which Arfan travelled through Yemen, Libya, Syria, Socotra, Afghanistan, North Pakistan and Uzbekistan before reaching Samarkand where his family originates.

Clocking at just over half an hour, Badshahi is an impressive journey through wonderfully lush sound structures and cinematic soundscapes. With the majority of compositions remaining below the three-minute mark, with the notable exception of the title track, Rai collects impressive sonic vignettes and carefully applies layer after layer of sound and melody to maintain the balance between the structural intricacy of his work and the impact created by his fluid melodies.

As the EP progresses through a variety of terrains, from the vocoder of Lectures, to the ethereal string work of Just The One Lament, the music flows effortlessly from one track to the next, each drawing on different atmospheric elements, yet forming an overall cohesive piece of work. While some soundscapes show signs of abrasions (Lectures, 74 Browning), other prove extremely sleek and luxurious. The general aspect of this EP is downbeat and peaceful, and tracks such as the impressive Lament Halves, the incredibly detailed Badshahi or 570 A.D contribute to this EP being the most impressive release from Rednetic yet.

CIRCADIAN
Current
CDS
Circadian Songs 2005 

Sometimes a record gets under the skin so much that it is difficult to know how to transcribe its impact with words. This is the case with this second self-released EP from Circadian. Born in Singapore in 1980 and still residing there today, sound artist Song Ming works from a laptop to create dense evolving ambient soundscapes.

Following first EP, Radial, released in 2004, Circadian returned over a year later with Current. Articulated around the notion of textures and the evolutionary process, or current, from one to another, developed over the course of five interlocked sequences, this EP rapidly appears to take a course of its own. If at times evoking the work of Fennesz, Song Ming collates a series of soundscapes assembled from various abrasive sources to form a series of dense sonic clouds serving as main structure for each one of the tracks. The changes are never clean cut here. The pace is slowed down considerably and the listener at times feels trapped under heavy blankets of processed white noise, subjected to the continuous assault of magma-like waves.

Of the five tracks, Occurent, which closes this EP, is perhaps the one that shows most connections with the outside world as processed radio waves are assembled in a radical structure which takes the concept of distortion to the limit, which remaining strangely pleasing to the ear.

It is difficult to see any clear direction for Song Ming to explore beyond this EP, but Current certainly proves an interesting piece of experimental sound work.