Max Loderbauer - Greyland

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  • Max Loderbauer, a respected collaborator of the likes of Ricardo Villalobos, Moritz Von Oswald and Tobias Freund, has only released one other solo record, 2013's Transparenz. Given the ensuing gap, you might expect his return to be an avalanche of pent-up ideas. But if anything, the German synthesist has got more tight-lipped with time. Will Lynch identified a "drab romance" in the austere synthscapes of Transparenz, matched by the grey cloudscape on its sleeve. This EP's cover, by Marionette's in-house illustrator Jake Fried, features an even darker woodland scene, in which only outlines can be picked out in the dim moonlight. The music matches. We're very much in Greyland, where the colour palette is narrow and the gestures restrained and cautious. The music's scale has reduced from Transparenz's broader kosmische panoramas into a series of up-close miniatures. But it's as rich as ever—you just have to lean in closer. Most of the EP scuds along on a furtive pulse. On "Corner" it's in the synth arps, clambering over each other like spiders while background textures grow to a dull roar. "Undercurrent"'s dry tones throb and hum to a more neutral tune. And the brighter "Artus" is almost playful, its sour metallic tones ping-ponging across a broader drone space. The track develops a subtle shuffle as it goes, which leads nicely into "Who's That Born," the closest thing to a dance track from a producer known for his work with techno legends. Not that you'll be hearing this on too many dance floors: its electro-ish groove is sluggish and smeared, nudging gloomily under the EP's most downcast bit of melody. In all this grey, two slightly more expressive tracks stand out. "Heliopolis"'s polysynth tones drift between majesty, sourness and moments of tender optimism, leaving viscous decay trails in their wake. The same reedy sounds return on "Golden Crescent," where after a couple of minutes a rumbling bassline throws their wandering patterns into a redemptive new light. It's a dramatic moment of catharsis, at least by the standards of this humble EP.
  • Tracklist
      A1 Corner A2 Undercurrent A3 Heliopolis B1 Artus B2 Who's That Born B3 Golden Crescent
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