Friday, March 20, 2009

Review: Lou-Lou and Cursed Chimera's Dance-Floor-Unfriendly New Albums - Data Breaker - The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper

今天收到Cursed Chimera的来信, 从而得知这篇The Stranger撰稿人Dave Segal写的这篇关于BP020的Review:

Cursed Chimera (Benatos Thompson) brings a more traditional IDM gestalt to his new album, Infinite Caustic Change (on Chinese netlabel Bypass; bp.bai-hua.org). He cites British duo Plaid as an influence, and similarities are apparent. Like that Warp Records artist, Cursed Chimera flaunts a varied palette of sounds and approaches. Infinite Caustic Change starts in surprisingly pretty style (given CC's previous industrial/dubstep productions), brandishing florid melodies above complex rhythms, all of it executed with an acute ear for sound design. Like Plaid's best work, it sounds rich. These tracks come across as if they're being meticulously massaged into being on hardware, but Thompson admits to using plug-ins.

By track 6 of Infinite Caustic Change, "Ghosts," things turn wonky, with the rhythms spazzing out and the synth textures taking on a harsher attitude. "Constant Ghost Fucking" intensifies the noise and increases the chaos, changing the tone dramatically. But "Fellow Spirits" ushers in a more chill, chipper atmosphere; it's tailor-made for soundtracking a moment of resolution in a drama.

With "New York Winter," though, he channels late-'70s Kraftwerk—all glorious, Teutonic melodic pomp and precision beats. "8 Bit Bitch" caps the album with staccato bass bumps and strident synth palpitations. It's as if Cursed Chimera is saying to hell with beauty and deciding to go out with a belligerent jab to your brain