- Sigha returns with an IDM-tinged techno EP.
- James Shaw's music as Sigha tends towards the centre of techno: detailed, atmospheric and heavy, without leaning too far in one direction. His quieter side projects, like Faugust, have shown the extent of his influences. Faugust debuted as the first record on Mira in 2014, but then Shaw abandoned the project. Five years later, Faugust is back, revived on Shaw's Our Circula Sound label.
The music on Parallel Rave Fantasies is hi-tech and futuristic, with glossy production and limber rhythms. The crunchy broken beats of "Cold Harbour" gesture at modern experimental club music, but the glitchy effects and decayed sounds have more in common with turn-of-the-millennium IDM. The chaotic drums of "Definition" recall the modular mastery of Richard Devine, as does the short "Breach." But the flashy processing wouldn't be nearly as interesting if it wasn't for the dramatic melodies that drape the backgrounds of the tracks, like the stirring strings on the title track and the surprisingly calm tones behind the relentless "Definition." "Parallel Rave Fantasies," especially, hints at Faugust's possibilities. With hardly a kick drum to be found, Shaw writes a riveting track that could hold a dance floor rapt. One of the most distinctive tracks of his career, it sounds futuristic but familiar.
TracklistA1 Cold Harbour
A2 Breach
A3 Process Aesthetics
B1 Parallel Rave Fantasies
B2 Definition