Maoupa Mazzocchetti – Untitled
Grinding. Dense. Lo-fi. Dusty. Some of the words that first come to mind when describing the recent work of Belgian producer Florent “Maoupa” Mazzocchetti. Bursting onto the scene seemingly out of nowhere last year with his debut A-Tranquility on Berlin’s Unknown Precept, the young Brussels based producer is now on to his third release this year, following up with a sequel to last year’s release, A-Morality and inaugurating local imprint PRR! PRR! with the brilliant 14.07.A7. He now makes his debut on Berlin’s Mannequin Records, quite a sign of approval considering Alessandro Adriani’s penchant for mainly dealing with re-issues.
He joins a small selection of current acts on the label roster such as L.A.s’ Deathday, Void Vision from Philadelphia and Houston’s //TENSE// There’s certainly a new side to Mazzocchetti on Untitled moving on from the sombre, hypnotic and at time guttural sounds showcased on 14.07.A in favour of something a bit more upbeat, darkly humorous and dare we say, danceable, this time around. Take “Why’re You Talking About You?” which features a drugged out sounding monologue, largely pitch shifted via delay, that sounds as paranoid as the title suggests. Random or accidental squeals from modular sources; at times like a siren, accompany the hissy percussion of cheap drum machines on an ode to Sunday morning telekinesis.
Mazzocchetti’s rusty reductionism is a constant throughout the EP. There is a pulsating retro aesthetic and po-faced simplicity that’s rather reminiscent of classic acts like early Front 242 or Fad Gadget, “Another Sinistra Century” zaps, snaps and warbles away in an analogue bubblebath until he states nonchalantly “Hey, get out of my room”. The only photos we’ve seen of Mazzocchetti are of him crammed into a small bedroom, presumably at his family home; walls adorned with creepy vintage wallpaper, amongst a mass of analogue machines. Could it, in fact, be a form on cabin fever leading to these paranoid vibes?
Finally “Psycht See” is the most aggressive offering here. A warped four minute excursion starting with some distortion that sounds like the tail end of an explosion, before dense and thunderous tom drums join in on the mix. Hissy high hats, rusty snares and a persisting melodic loop faces off with a stuttering vocal sample. Maybe he doesn’t leave that room of his much at all these days, but at least he’s being productive. What his Mum and Dad (and next door neighbour) can’t quite possibly fathom yet is that Maoupa Mazzocchetti is a man on a mission: working with the frayed and damaged circuitry of pawn shop synths and resuscitating them, finding a new soul in the machines.
Nic Tuohey
Tracklisting:
1. Why’re You Talking About You
2. Another Sinistra Century
3. Psycht See