Renaissance Man - Kama

  • Share
  • Since emerging with the aerosol-sampling single Spraycan back in 2011, Finnish-German duo Renaissance Man have crafted records that slay dance floors without taking themselves too seriously. Their 2011 album, The Renaissance Man Project, drew from an impressively expansive palette that encompassed tropical tones, Köze-esque house jams and dubbed-out techno, but its sonic wandering was underpinned by a tongue-in-cheek humour that made happy neighbours out of disparate sounds. This playfulness has been largely expunged this year, first via the grinding techno of January's Call2Call EP, and then Early Man, which launched the pair's Black Ocean label, and proved that given enough reverb, even the "Woo! Yeah!" break becomes depressing. The Kama EP continues their move toward more functional techno, with both sides riddled with whirring machinery and atmospheres that evoke a coalface. But whether it's the beeps that dull the title-track's acidic synth riff, or the inconceivable decision to sample Brad Pitt's Chanel commercial on "Journey," Kama feels like a clown who thinks he's profound because he's put on a trenchcoat and started reading Sartre. Dour dance music has never been more fashionable, but Renaissance Man's efforts miss the mark.
  • Tracklist
      A Kama (Dance With Me Into A New Age Of Love) B Journey
RA