The musical moniker of Montreal-based Nimalan Yoganathan isn’t going to do him much good at customs (it’s Shoebomber), even if the Banksy-style cover art gives the name a pop spin. But his Cantus in Memory of Lasantha Wickramatunga, named for an assassinated Sri Lankan journalist, should get him all the right sort of attention. Its four tracks deftly blend synthesized rhythms, borrowed funk, and found field recordings. The opening track employs a brief loop of what could be African pop — taking a horn part and, with repetition, stretching it into something trance-inducing.
And better yet, Yoganthan isn’t just looping for its own sake. Each track on Cantus changes as it proceeds. That first song, “Le Petit Sauvage,” for example, moves through backwards-warped samples and clubby beats before it comes to a close (MP3). Also particularly recommended is “Sangam Dub,” the arid rhythms of which could be a downtempo Timbaland production (MP3).
Get the full set at notype.com.
The word “equilibrium” brings with it a false sense of placidity. In truth, equilibrium has an underlying unease — accompanying the term is the sense of opposed forces. On the surface, it suggests balance; in truth, there’s sweat on its brow. Thus it’s entirely fitting that Seth Cluett titled his recent release on the Stasisfield netlabel A Position in Equilibrium. For what begins as bug-like roving — actually, earlier still, what begins as a deep near silence, only to slowly reveal insectoid noise — eventually becomes a mix of subtly shifting sine waves and all manner of small sounds (