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10/13 EP // Möd3rn
Label: Möd3rn Records
Format: 12”/Digital
Release Date: 30/11/2013
The fact the Möd3rn trio’s individual members have each had their own fruitful solo careers is probably enough of an explanation, however it’s still hard to get over how strong a debut the ‘10/13’ EP actually is. On the surface the release offers three tracks of slamming, rough-edged warehouse techno, yet there is also a restraint and underlying appreciation for noisey, abrasive sounds that sets this release apart from your usual peak-time DJ tool.
Pounding four to the floor kicks and glitchy, crumpled percussion opens ‘Mö1’ launching into foot-stomping industrial rhythms with little hesitation. Whilst the textures are suitably gritty and rough around the edges to be considered as warehouse techno, the track seems to shake free some of the frowning seriousness held by much of the genre; likely due to the fact its infectious swinging grooves are so incredibly dancefloor friendly.
Continuing in this vein, ‘Mö2’ sees churning chords filter in and out of focus at a frantic pace above pummeling low-end, calling to mind Rene Pawolitz’s EQD project. A sidechained high-end synth is brought in around the midpoint, adding a sense of tension to Möd3rn’s twisting hook and breakneck drum patterns.
The EP’s final offering ‘Mö3’ is perhaps the most experimental of the three, centring around a gently mutating analogue riff ebbing and flowing between vapourous percussion and a cavernous, swampy low-end. Whilst the previous two offerings are geared towards peak-time functionality, ‘Mö3’ feels more tailored towards swaying crowds in the early-hours, with its vaguely unsettling static textures and discordant synth line.
Without losing anything in terms of functionality, Möd3rn have managed to craft an incredibly richly textured release through the 10/13 EP, putting themselves forwards as an act well worth keeping tabs on into 2014.
- Published
- Nov 26, 2013
- Credits
- Words by Theo Darton-Moore