Review: German techno heads VRIL & Rodhad are right at the heart of the contemporary scene and they prove that again here with a strong new statement in the form of Out Of Place Artefacts II on the latter's WSNWG imprint. It is a second album that goes deep into a wider sphere of sound than the first and so is full of surprises. There are plenty of gloomy and dark cuts like the broken beats and shards of melody on 'Welltron' as well as sparse industrial ambient like 'Black Goo' and mysterious cosmic sound worlds depicted on 'Clarion'. The gorgeous closer 'Triskaideka' brings classical charm with musicians Angelina Delgado on violin and Alexandra Ivanova on viola. A superb collection.
Review: According to the accompany information, VRIL and Rodhad's first collaborative full-length was dually inspired by a desire to "subvert the expectations of their previous work" and the real world phenomena of unusual artefacts that baffle both archaeologists and historians (in their words, "strange anomalies scattered throughout the world"). Musically, the album is something of a slown-burn treat, with the pair slowly ambling between heady ambient soundscapes, buzzing, slow-motion psychedelic techno, creepy and bass-heavy electronic experiments, acid-flecked IDM, deep dub techno and productions that cannily blur the boundaries between these various stylistic touchpoints. As a result, Out of Place Artefacts is a startling and hugely enjoyable collection of mysterious musical movements.
We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you've provided to them or that they've collected from your use of their services.