Sleepy.
May 27th, 2014
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Manchurian Candy by
Utabi (recommended by lurker)
It's hard to talk about Utabi's style of music. It sounds like a mixture between IDM and chiptune - which is peculiar off the bat. Perhaps it's best to describe it as a more playful and aggressive Autechre? Or at least, a more focused Aphex Twin. Either way, Utabi's style is quite unique. It's not something that you can explain in genres. Manchurian Candy is generally IDM, with elements of chiptune and even VGM-influenced.
Like I said before, it's hard to talk about Utabi's music. It's intriguing, to say the least. Tracks like Windo05 remind me of Aphex Twin considerably, but with much better production and focus. At the same time, there are tracks like Crackback Cheese which are hard-hitting - shattering that Aphex Twin resemblance. Crackback Cheese almost reminds me of harsher forms of breakcore, like Xanopticon. However, the playfulness is still there. It's a little odd to see this combination of playfulness and aggression, but it surprisingly works. It's a very unique sound, which does engage me quite a bit.
There's a huge amount of variation here. For example, Kmoizcarkt Shoimse Back has some influences of j-core, while Three Tennies is predominantly chiptune. Three Tennies is far too playful for me to like, however. It reminds me really strongly of NES platformers, which is sweet. Just not my cup of tea aurally.
So much variation. Every track virtually sounds different from one another. Doll-Shape-Automaton is a progressive IDM track. It starts off with strong resemblances of Autechre, and just takes its own form. Its minimalism is what makes this track so beautiful. While the track does sound very clustered at points, it feels very spacious throughout. Its progression is so fluid, it's very commendable. Probably one of the best IDM tracks I've heard in a while, as I don't think there's anything as insane as this.
Oddly enough, the tracks that I don't like as much are somewhat similar. At least, the atmospheres they create are alike. Turntable Utabied and Three Tennies both remind me of retro video games and are too playful for me to like. While the former is more twinkly more than playful, I feel that those two types of emotions tie themselves together very closely. It's a good thing that the album is very varied, I suppose.
Now I could talk about the variation and the tracks and all for a long time, but I'll stop there. I'll start with the things I didn't like. This album is ultimately, a mixed bag. As I mentioned before, Utabi's music is very playful. I think I could say that he's one of the most playful IDM artists out there. His music is very focused for sure, but it's too upbeat and playful for me. His more cold/clinical tracks like Doll-Shape-Automaton click me a lot more. This is more of a personal gripe more than anything else though.
Hmm, other than that I don't have anything else to say. I did get kinda bored quite late into the album, but I don't think IDM albums should be this long anyway. Along with the varying quality of all these tracks, I can't think too highly of this album. There are multiple tracks that caught my attention though, so I can't say that I disliked it. On the contrary, actually. This is a playful album done right, for the most part. The tracks here are quite complex in structure and have quite the unique sound. Half of these aren't my cup of tea, but I could respect those works. Highly recommended for anyone into IDM and the like.
Album Highlights: Lighpotllution, Doll-Shape-Automaton, Cassie Angustifolia
Track Average Rating: -
Overall Rating: 6.5/10