“Conceived and executed in Nottingham” is the proud boast of this debut CD on the Oeuvre label and it proves there’s more going on in the city’s bedrooms than you might think.
Punk, d’n'b, synth pop, techno have all had their own ‘centres of excellence’ in terms of suburban cities as they seem to attract musicians like the birth places of the Industrial Revolution attracted the rural poor to exploit the natural resources of coal, iron, waterways and the like in days of old.
At one time, Nottingham and the surrounds prowess was based on coal, canals and lace but that was years ago and post Paul Smith, today there’s P45, BrokeBust, AntAcid, Blunted State, Sounds Of The Vagabond and Future Mowgli working out the latest in electronica, jungle, techno, dubstep and more on just one CD.
That said, what sets this apart is that the tracks are not particularly genre focused; like a fusion. There’s a Warp/Planet Mu/King Cannibal/Amon Tobin/BLOC Weekender lineage going on that’s with a Bristol bass head wobble and you get the idea?
As a new label, this is an impressive introduction as they forge their own identity. Particularly enjoy the dark eerie experimentations of Sounds of the Vagabondz’ ‘Ian Curtis Acid’ and the the post clanger techno of ‘Untitledtechnosong’.
At the other extreme is the full on ‘Roland Acid’ of AntAcid, some serious polution from The Purple Monatsu or the ambient-jungle of ‘Malevolent Zen’, the frenetic JB inspired ‘Do Something Freaky’ and the manic of BrokeBust’s ‘Gary’s Comics’; thier the other track ’2 Weeks Later’ is tad-acid-mad obvious (or is it?)
It might have been an idea to have a (at least one) track with some vocals/rap as (potential) light relief as it’s very full on 13 tracks. P45′s ‘Cognitive Dissonance’ doesn’t count as it’s a scary Indo-dubstep-samba-snuff movie soundtrack stuff (plus he’s actually based in Leeds).
He also happens to have loads of industry contacts thorough his Room 237 club night and currently represents Shitmat (he of On Foot In The Rave that came out earlier this year – if you love that, this CD is one for you also). P45′s other track, ends the CD with close on 8 minutes of twisted dubstep’n'b with a track called ‘Creed’.
The compilation starts with a Blunted State track with a daft title but slips in a nice trumpet sample (in fact there’s quite a lot going on this one and it’s worth sticking with) and their other track ‘Soul Alley’ is a definite highlight as it spans dub to electronic prog rock (and in terms of building a set with Jah Wobble’s ‘Get Carter‘ from the leftfield) it’s a winner!
If you happen to be a bedroom producer in Nottingham and surrounding areas, check out the website links (see below) and the Oeuvre Presents… club nights to see if you are their next signing. This CD is clearly just for starters.
Reviewed: Various – Electronic Listening Music: Volume 1 (Oeuvre) Cat. No. CLA001 Release date: 14th December 2009
Tracklistings:
1. Extremecrunchandflava – Blunted State (5:22)
2. Fighting Ceephax In The Street – AntAcid (3:17)
3. 2 Weeks Later – BrokeBust (5:51)
4. Cleij-v()ep – Songs Of The Vagabondz (4:57)
5. Untitledtechnosong – Songs Of The Vagabondx (4:15)
6. Ian Curtis Acid – Songs Of The Vagabondz (4:17)
7. Roland Acid – AntAcid (2:24)
8. Horkublips@mykatana – The Purple Monatsu (4:13)
9. Malevolent Zen – Future Mowgli (5:35)
10. Cognitive Dissonance – P45 (7:25)
11. Gary’s Comics – BrokeBust (3:50)
12. Soul Alley – Blunted State (5:17)
13. Do Something Freaky – BrokeBust (4:05)
14. Creed – P45 (7:41)
Links:
http://www.myspace.com/theoeuvreinstituteofrecordingtechnology
www.last.fm/oeuvre2009
www.rm237.co.uk
26th November – Grasscut, Live @ Dogstar w/ Robert Logan + P45 Another installment of our monthly residency at The Dogstar to look forward to. Electronica themed evening featuring Slowfoot’s ROBERT LOGAN and recent
Ninja Tune signings GRASSCUT, plus a laptop set from P45.
The Dogstar, 389 Coldharbour Lane, Brixton SW9 £7/5 adv -<www.wegottickets.com> 7.30pm
ROOM 237 presents FRIDAY 20TH MARCH 2009 DAEDELUS Live (Ninja Tune), THE LONG LOST Live (Ninja Tune), CRACKLE Live (Slowfoot) P45 Live (Room 237)
