Recommended
La Metamorfosis Part. 1 // Reeko
Label: Mental Disorder
Format: 12”/Digital
Release Date: 02/03/2015
100 years since the publication of the chilling and brilliant novella, we are still unpacking Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’. From Cronenberg’s ‘The Fly’ to R. Crumb’s graphic reimagining and even an appearance in The Simpsons, the angst and horror of The Metamorphosis never seems to leave our collective unconsciousness, no matter how many times we try and exorcise it. The latest instalment of these recurring nightmares comes from Asturian-born producer Reeko, this time bringing the anguish of Gregor Samsa into the world of brooding techno…
The EP opens with a soft, icy pad, enveloping the stereo field like a giant white sheet and framing the mood of the whole release. This functions as a kind of modern equivalent of tuning an orchestra; wetting the sonic palette and teasing out the flavours to come. We then have three movements; ‘Capitulo’ I-III, and with each new act a new dimension to the plot is added. I moves at the earthy, subterranean level, grounding the subs into immovable foundations, whilst II pushes things further into more technical and trippy realms. By the third act, we are in seriously avant-garde techno territory, and this is the highlight of the release for sure.
Indeed, by the final track, the record has undertaken the kind of drive that we find in Kafka’s Metamorphosis - there is no real release or escape from its dynamic push, and instead every track insists of piling on more and more intensity, like a never-ending roller-coaster that can only go up… But it’s worth pointing out here that this is but part one in a two-part series, the second half of which is expected to come later this year. With this in mind, the EP (or half-album) should perhaps not be considered as a distinct, discrete whole, but rather as mere hint at more to come soon. If this is anything to go by, then part two is going to be fucking mental.
- Published
- Mar 1, 2015
- Credits
- Words by Georgie_McVicar