Dadub – Monad VIII review

The Monad series has aimed and largely succeeded in getting techno producers to explore their more esoteric side –  and the eighth in the series from Stroboscopic Artefacts is no exception. Indeed, any electronic music release that draws influence from a Nobel Prize-winning scientist –  Ilya Prigogine, after whom “Ilya” is named –  is unlikely to offer up run of the mill DJ fodder. The aforementioned “Ilya” sees Dadub set a tone that is both menacing and captivating as the solemnly intoned phrase “evolutionary feedback” prefaces a descent into walls of electronic noise and the dead paced thump of a ponderous bass drum.

A similar mood prevails on “Hadean”, a track notable for the vast swathes of feedback that vie for the listener’s attention, as Dadub’s robust, dense broken beats sound like footsteps treading on crunchy, autumnal leaves. That doesn’t mean that VIII is entirely couched in furrowed-brow seriousness or that Dadub has somehow misread the brief. Like the preceding instalments, this release works precisely because there are a plurality of approaches.

The swirling, hazy ambience of “Biopoiesis” is an entirely different proposition, its creaky, spooky tones conjuring up memories of Tangerine Dream and Eno, while on “Amnion”, Dadub finally lurches towards the dance floor. However, true to the series’ form, straight techno beats only kick in after the producer has taken his audience through a forest of magical, swirling sound effects.

Richard Brophy