Recommended
02/14 EP // Möd3rn
Label: Möd3rn Records
Format: 12”/Digital
Release Date: 03/02/2014
Few new artists manage to grab my attention quite so successfully as illusive trio Möd3rn did with their thundering self-released debut, the 10-13 EP. With the the groove laden three tracker having sold out recently, the release of their successive 12”, the ‘02-14’ EP seems timed all the better.
Whilst the first EP straddled the House & Techno crossover to some extent, this following release shifts to a much darker perspective. Whilst occupying a more brooding, dub-inflected sonic territory, Möd3rn still manage to keep a firm grip on the propulsive dancefloor rhythms that made the first EP so infectious.
Dubby, stuttering synths open first track ‘Mö4’. These echoing, atmospheric blasts are regimented by pounding industrial rhythms, creating a brooding march beneath the comparatively wild melodic components. This results in a rather interesting juxtaposition, sounding something like how a Planetary Assault Systems remix of someone like Vladislav Delay might sound.
The mesmeric ‘Mö5’ follows a similar mediation between dub and industrial Techno, balancing propulsive stabs with muscular drums that fill even the slightest of spaces.
'Mö6' takes a slightly more restrained approach, better suited to early-hour sets than it's peak-time counterparts. Claustrophobic low-end rumbles ominously beneath filtering hi-end percussion and evenly placed stabs, echoing out in the track's dynamic builds and breakdowns.
The second release from Möd3rn may do little more to illuminate their personal history and back story (I still couldn’t tell you the names of those involved or how the project was formed), yet in terms of revealing more about their sound, the 02-14’ EP definitely fills a few blank pages.
- Published
- Feb 5, 2014
- Credits
- Words by Theo Darton-Moore