Spilling out from Filter Musikk, the cut is the latest singles and EPs currently infiltrating the Oslo DJ scene in real time. Every Friday at Filter Musikk we get first dibs on the freshly pressed records, the smell of new vinyl and the indescribable satisfaction of ripping through the thin plastic sleeve as we explore the latest electronic music pieces reserved for the vinyl format.
These are the tangible truths, the physical format that keeps the real record industry chugging along, and live beyond the expectations of the hype machine. These are the records that will live on in record collections and record bags all over the city, long after they and their artists popularity wains, a salient investment in the fundamentals of club- and music culture.
Originally on the “Nuel – Konstrukt 005” release from 2017, “Avenza” and “Aquatermae” get the remix treatment on this release from Semantica. Wata Igarashi and Max Durante were put to work on the originals with the singular objective; take the tracks and make them more. They expound on the atmospheres of the Svreca and Retina.it tracks, by retaining the trio’s minimalist arrangements, but adding a miasmic cloud of noise and disruptive layers through which determined 4/4 kicks punch a hole.
Although the two remix artists put their own stamp on their interpretations, it wavers little from that potent Semantica sound. As one of the few labels still holding true to the original ethos of Techno, proclaiming the sounds of the future, Semantica and artists like Wata Igarashi, Max Durante, Svreca and Retina.it continue to explore the endless possibilities of an electronic music sound palette. Hyper minimalist and intended for the dance floor, without ever becoming too functional, Semantica’s pursuit is onerous in the modern history of the genre.
Dina Gad – Crack The Whip (Thank You)
Schwefelgelb – Aus Den Falten (aufnahme + wiedergabe)
In at Filter Musikk this week is a box of aufnahme + wiedergabe records, a label out of Berlin that’s been bringing the punk edge back to the electronic music for a while. Snarling at the conformists and glaring, vehemently at the kowtowers, aufnahme + wiedergabe have sequestered themselves in a niche corner of electronic music, between the margins of EBM, Techno and Industrial genres to make one of the most formidable statements on electronic, club music.
Among the Konkurs, Terence Fixmer and S S S S records Filter Musikk received this week from the label Schwefelgelb stand out as one of the most inhibited artists currently producing this style of music. It’s the sound of Berlin as you imagine it to be, raw and not in the way of some inflated Techno press release. It’s machine music through and through that speaks to something corporeal and primal on the dance floor.
Afriqua – Vice/Principle EP (R&S)
Afriqua (Adam Longman Parker) is the embodiment of twentieth century composition. Channeling electronic music intended for dance floors into the cerebral, he creates expansive enlightened musical universes. On his latest EP, “Vice/Principle” for R&S contrapuntal, minimalists textures make up the arrangements, with interconnecting passages creating a sparse sonic atmosphere that envelopes the listener.
For this release on R&S in order to dance comes to mind, as Parker weaves beguiling electronic experiments between kick drums, 303 bass excursions and feathery pads. like droplets of water falling on the dance floor, each sound and its ultimate design, is executed in harmony with some greater narrative of the track. There’s something introspective about the progression of tracks like “Cerch” that conspire with tendencies in Jazz, but it remains open and inclusive.
There’s very little repetitiveness in the music itself, with form playing an important part in the songs, and even though there’s always a beat to latch onto the journey happens on the outer edges on the music, where it is a very organic experience for the listener.