[SET-UP]
DJ Screw's
music is timeless. Even
with the possibility that Screw's body of work is nothing more than a
glorified trip enhancer hanging over fans' heads like a brown wave of
ripe pollution in a valley, the recordings live in a galaxy all their
own. The judge, jury, and executioner is draped in a cloak of rich
purple as he oversees seven days worth of work.
Of course, to draw parallels between a Mexico City
electronica DJ and a homemade-tape raptreneur from the American
Midwest is more fantasy than reality. Arguing to the contrary is
foolish. But allow me the opportunity and some of the absurdity can
be minimized.
Strange and intuitively bothersome as a concept seems,
it is nonetheless endearing. Like an unhealthy teenage relationship,
attraction is impossible to deny. The compulsion is too strong to
repel. At the end of the day pleasure is found in the likeliest and
most unpleasant of places; context always places poor situations in a
realistic light
A random tangent but one that is useful in establishing
a premise. Three elements breathe infinite life to screwed-up drank
supplements. The first is the inimitable essence of the Screw
freestyles. Lil Keke, Z-Ro, Scarface, Fat Pat, and the like were
present at the moment. SUC members inhabited history as it occurred.
These relics cannot be repeated. The likelihood for imitation and
mimicry exists, but recreation eludes these rap mimes like summer
school victims
The second element
cannot be attributed to the Screwmaster general in the strictest of
senses, but if the Texas
Monthly can be taken at its word the inevitable nostalgia of hit
songs helped boost Screwtapes' pedigree. “Mo Money, Mo Problems”
“Let Me Ride” and “High Til I Die,” shine a spotlight on some
remix selections; Chopping and Screwing adds a variation to the known
not unlike a dash of orange juice to a whiskey sour; tangy and
addictive.
Third, and final, is a package deal. Escaping the
gravitational pull of slowed down music is hard. Really, really
difficult. The possibility to listen to slowed down music always
exists but is rarely taken advantage of beyond momentarily morbid
curiosity1.
Essentially playing music at any speed other than the one it is
intended for is a novelty no one cares to admit enjoying. But here is
a host who has already made the choice – songs that sound good at
an alternative speed are ready for enjoyment. Also, as novel as it
may be, Slowed not Throwed credentials force listeners' brains to
work differently. Listening to slowed down music makes the brain
compensate; adjust. Sitting down to smell the roses requires active
engagement. Again, perhaps nothing more than a byproduct of the
drugs.
Below
the surface Ñaka
Ñaka
is an EDM DJ Screw. In a silence the words are aggressively shouted,
“Slow your life the fuck down!” This Mexico City by London
musician challenges the audience to reconsider what is known. Pay
heed to the gaps.
[REVIEW]
This records was listened to once-ish before the writing
of this review.
Ñaka
Ñaka's
October 2012 release is a salad bar of contradictions. Some of the
advice I would give to these sounds' newcomer is, “Do not blink
because you will more than likely miss something,” along with, “Oh,
and close your eyes while you are listening.” A record grounded in
reality but excelling in the paranormal, the ghost of Ira Gitler is
suddenly conjured. What these sounds accomplish best is revisiting,
“sheets of sound”. In no sense is it a reinvention of Coltrane's
rapid fire notes that barely fit within a musical phrase. Moving
beyond the possibly obscure Italian reference, “Baldi” makes an
effective use of classical melody to this end. Ñaka
Ñaka's
sheets of sound are more like drapes; scenic back drops for a
cerebral rave. The sound pays homage to this musician's interior
audio design skills.
Beyond
the title, though, not much must be uttered:
Música Para Clubs Clausurados (Music
for Cloistered Clubs) If a club is a social setting, why would it
need to be cloistered? Is it a club if no one is present? Why is
their something similar to a Trent Reznor logo appropriated for a
banner on the Bandcamp page2?
Contradictions.
Contradictions. Contradictions. The power of repetition becomes
blatantly obvious, too upon the conclusion of the first track
“M-Tro.” In the midst of foreshadowing, the initial song also
takes the time to highlight the relationship between reiteration and
subtly. Once the same pattern is played one, two, three times, and
beyond for a debutant 8 minute track, it is easy to take shelter in
any noticeable change.
The most emotive
aspects within this record is gradual shifts in the accepted norm.
Listen to the first three minutes of the song “Kao's.” While
tones drone on and keys meander in the same vicinity, it takes a
whole 1:17 for a 4/4 groove to develop. The only major difference
that will occur for the remainder of the song is, again, incessantly
gentle shifts that shake the core anyone bold enough to grow
comfortable.
While
on the note of subtlety, the downright silly humor Ñaka
Ñaka
works in the mix is not at all worth missing. Genre's are constructs
and mean nothing, but surely no reason to avoid ahving fun. If Hi-NRG
is acceptable, why not Lo-NRG? Trace elements of Trance, House, and
Hardcore can be found, but by far the most amusing allusion to fads
gone by is the song “X-It.” A challenge is presented: can anyone
x-step to ambient breakbeat? “Toon Town” resides in the same
neighborhood of sound and is just as worthy of a listen.
By
no means, though, it Música
an
idyllic record. The general song structure appears to be
build...build...build...plateau....slight abrogation...fade outs; the
latter used to an excessive degree. It could play to the idea of a
brain teasers or a DJ trolling his listener up until losing steam;
hardly necessary to explore any further.
It
can just as easily be said that the whole album is a compilation of
downtempo takes on popular beats (see: “Casa Rasta”). Hardly. If
nothing else the music is ethereal; impressionistic. Take the whole
picture straight to the dome. While these beats may compose the
entire reason for a fan's admiration on any standard track, in Ñaka
Ñaka's
world it is a sideshow; an extra in the climactic scene. It is an
effect used very well – almost as if to say, if you focus on any
one element you may miss the superior surroundings.
Plus, for the most
part these beats serve as an indicator that time is passing; a
metrometronome, a metronome with flare. Songs are allowed breathe
until they are comfortable. “Medusas” exemplifies this with a
faster, more involved rhythm. A whole range of space is explored with
cascades of different sounds from deep house sensibilities to strings
samples.
For
what it is worth, electronica as an umbrella style of music can be
divided into two camps: social and personal. One is enjoyed in the
company of many others, the other with only headphones and only one
must stay atuned to tastes and aesthetics. The roof is high for Ñaka
Ñaka,
wherever he may ultimately reside; and if 2013's Juan
Pestañas (and
it's marvelous tracklist) is any indicator the venture has only
started. Take Música
Para Clubs Clausuradosis quite the introduction to this fertile mind.
Jonathan Cohen is a recovering college radio DJ,discover-er of Jimmy Hoffa Tourettes, and once lauded expert on shrubbery. You can follow him on Twitter through the handle @BoggleUrNoggle
1The
headless horseman does have a shoulder area after all.
2Think
about it for a second...NIN...take the I and place it about the n's
like a tilde. ÑÑ.
No comments:
Post a Comment