(This is a review I did for the second issue of the Old Hedgy Times, which can be acquired here http://www.amazon.com/Hedgy-Times-Issue-Magazine-ebook/dp/B00BMWNDA4. They may or may not want me to write for them regularly, so show them some love so they’ll think I’m cool! http://oldtimeyhedgehog.com)
A bandcamp link landed in my inbox with the forwarding information of “I’d spin this.” Knowing my editor’s superior taste, I grabbed it, expecting some fun, up-beat chiptune. Instead, I got a reminder that chiptune can be anything, including modern, relevant and awesome. I’ve started calling the genre it approximates “Swedish Chip Mafia.” There is an almost commercial house sound to the beats that, weirdly, isn’t a bad thing. This flexibility in the chords and beats chosen gave me a heavy dose of “oh right…you can do everything with Chiptune if you try hard enough.”
“Alive Again” needs to be remixed by Sebastian Ingrosso, or slipped into one of David Guetta’s not-live sets. There’s enough good deep notes of big room in the track that it should instantly remind everyone who thinks of commercial house as simplistic, that yes, not only is it is simplistic, but it’s so simplistic that it can be run in chiptune format. The elements that are at the base of the tracks on this EP are solid and they make for a surprisingly effective dance floor I’d wager, especially if mixed in with non-chip tracks.
“The Mothersound” is a ridiculously named track that satisfies ridiculously. It’s priceless in what it attempts & how it succeeds. 1:10 in, any fears that DJ Roborob can’t supply the tug and pull of an over the top mega-club vibe disintegrate. The crashing beats and the chippy groove give it some muscle and I’d love to hear this on some serious speakers. “Clockwork” is where my label of Swedish Chip Mafia came from. There’s just something to hearing progressive, anthemic house being dropped using an 8/16bit beat/sound structure. There is this “I’ve heard this at a big room show” feel to the track that is inescapable, especially at around 2:15. And the chip sample usage is poignant and super-effective!
“Delectro” breaks down into this super-fun little groove 90 seconds in that will get you dancing. Around your house, on the subway, in your chair at work, the location doesn’t matter. A delightful synthy sonata that gets at the core of what some of the melodies we’re dancing to at mega clubs are about. “Paragon” features a second contributor, First Touch, and I applaud the collab. The track starts a bit more punchy & traditionally chip-tuney . And at 2:50, you’re flung into a realm of old school rave, which, for a lot of us, is the last time we heard chiptune dropped anywhere with more than fifty people at it. There is this victorious nature to the chord progression that just makes you want to rock it out.
“Plug ‘n Play” (with vocal work by SuperPowerless I assume) closes out the EP in an almost pop-punky way, bringing the chippy goodness to a close. There’s a distinct “Robot Rock” feel to the set of tracks, as it seems to be a core of deeply synthesized work that can be consumed on its own or layered in delightful additional goodness. My editor was right. I’d spin it too.
Terry Gotham 