Album: Tvenna EP
Year: 2010
Label: Lamadameaveclechien
Genre: Techno, Minimal, IDM
Website: www.lamadameaveclechien.com
Basics:
We got a few things from an Icelandic experimental electronica label, this is another one. This one is sort of like cinematic techno with IDM influence. I should preface this review with saying that I don't listen to techno, and so I make no claim to being a connoisseur thereof. This is an EP and it only contains two tracks, which are 11 and 10 minutes long, respectively. The first track is more IDM influenced, with clicky, sporadic percussion, and the second is more, I guess, techno-y. It proves to be a brief, though interesting, ride nonetheless.
Good stuff:
+ atmosphere. Atmosphere is (most?) important in any music, and from what my friends tell me, techno is all about it. If that's true than Einoma follow suit accordingly. Like most techno, it's got that steady, repetitive quasi-minimalistic beat that plods along, driving the tracks, while there are some ambient textures and beeping and so forth weaving around the beats. The tracks slowly build over their duration, occasionally reaching crescendo and then dropping down into the shadows of the earth only to map their bombastic rise again. This EP has a very cinematic quality to it; it feels like it would be the soundtrack to one of those surreal, semi-creepy, artsy films playing down at the local modern art museum. It's good at building suspense and tension.
+ sounds. The choice of sounds on this EP is solid; the drums and synths mix together well. You will have to listen closely, but there is a lot to pick out for the active listener. The atmospheric textures are just minimal enough to not get in the way, but yet present enough to give an underlying depth to each track. I like the first song, Minioma, more because it's got more IDM type sounds in it. It reminds me of Pleq or Amorph, but a little bit better production. Einoma seem to leave the best for last, as the most interesting parts of these songs is always at the end; a good technique to force you to listen all the way through, haha.
+ production. This has pretty good production. I'm not sure how it would sound in a club, but the elements all sit well in the mix and mesh well with one another. Similar to the other Lamadameaveclechien stuff we got to review, the mixes on "Tvenna EP" are very spacious, which is an important factor when conveying atmosphere. Each element has a lot of room to breath and, as such, the tracks feel very "wide" and "big".
Bad stuff:
- repetitive. What's the first term that comes to mind when you hear "techno"? I'd wager that it is "repetitive". These tracks do not disappoint in that area. There is a good deal going on and the tracks do evolve - just very slowly. There are very few sweeping changes, and if you're not listening closely, it can feel like nothing is altered for entire 3-4 minutes spans. If you're not a fan of minimal techno than this one probably won't convert you.
- short duration. It's hard to recommend EPs because of their brief duration. This one barely clocks in at over 21 minutes and is comprised of only 2 tracks. I guess thats not bad if you buying it on Vinyl, but a 20 minute, 2 track CD is hard to sell. Would've like a little more here; it's hard to get a feel for a band with only 2 songs.
Summary:
An interesting EP; it's not something I would have checked out on my own, but I enjoyed it. I honestly don't know how much I'd really listen to this, but I think fans of techno would definitely appreciate it. I can't say how new or innovative it is within its respective genre, but it sounds like the people making it know what they're doing, so take away from this review what you will.
Overall Rating: n/a....hard to rate techno when I don't know much about it.
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