Daniel Ruane - Tengu

  • Chaotic experimental club tracks with hints of IDM.
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  • At its weirdest, the crash and clang of experimental club music shares a lot with IDM. Daniel Ruane, who has released for labels like Infinite Machine and oqko, could be the poster boy for this crossover, mixing frenetic rhythms with sophisticated sound design in the vein of late-period Autechre. His latest EP launches Meine Nacht, the new label from the rising Liverpool DJ Breakwave. It's the strongest and densest work of Ruane's young career, and is paired with an interactive audiovisual event at the Tate Liverpool, which should give you an idea of his approach: club music as abstract modern art. Meine Nacht describes "Tengu" as "manipulated fucked-step," which is as good a place to start as any. It's a tangle of metal shards that occasionally form a rhythm, while lower-pitched sounds fray into abrasive basslines. It sounds like Ruane reverse-engineered records from the likes of Objekt and LOFT, then bashed them together. One section introduces a sound akin to one in Clipse's "Grindin'," before it all fades into an eerie drift. "IV (CF_BD)" feels ordinary in comparison, though even here few producers could match Ruane's level of detail and chaos. Tengu is a promising start for a new label.
  • Tracklist
      A Tengu B IV (CF_BD)
RA