- Powerful improvised techno from Blawan and Pariah.
- "The good thing about when you're improvising is that you get those really key moments where it all just progresses," Blawan, one half of Karenn, said in 2014. "Then suddenly, naturally, it gels together." As Karenn, Blawan and Pariah have been jamming their way through clubs with dense, writhing techno made from their plethora of hardware. Putting those travels to good use, Volume 1, the first release from Voam Club Archive, is constructed entirely from tracks recorded from their pounding live sets. The four vinyl cuts capture the essence of the pair's improvisations and their knotty machine music.
In a change of tone to the psychedelic Kind Of Green, Volume 1 begins with the tense, acid-inflected electronics of "Berlin - Live Cut 1." Relentless kicks, martial snares and synth tones tumble over one another as the intensity builds. You can hear recurring elements being introduced, removed, tweaked and reworked in real time, providing a snapshot of how their layered compositions are constructed in the club. "Berlin - Live Cut 2" and "Amsterdam - Live Cut 1" both channel similarly buzzing, uneasy atmospheres. On "Rome - Live Cut 1" the pair slow things down, partnering a sad robot melody with galloping, brutalist kicks and occasional washes of noise. Volume 1's exuberant messiness is further evidence of the duo's humanistic approach to techno.
TracklistA1 Berlin - Live Cut 1
A2 Berlin - Live Cut 2
B1 Rome - Live Cut 1
B2 Amsterdam - Live Cut 1