Anthony Rother "Elixir of Life" Fax Sublabel (PS 08/100)
Elixir of Life Part 1-10 60:43
Anthony Rother has established himself as the leading artist in the current electro field with his two albums "Simulationszeitalter" and "Hacker" on his own PSI49Net label. These albums are modern classics that are inspired by the future as much as the past – while the Kraftwerk influence is admittedly very evident in his records, both in the musical framework (danceable-beats-meet-hummable-melodies-and-vocoderized-vocals) and in the references and general outlook (commenting on trends and tendencies in modern society, plus an obsession with robots and technology), Rother isn't, however, a regressive copycat à la the British act Komputer – instead, he has a sound and a vision that is truly his own. And unlike most artists in the current "electroclash" vogue, he actually knows how to make a solid production, and avoids the middle-brow camp and ironic pastiches of that genre, focusing instead on creating his own agenda. OK, so his lyrics aren't as clever as Ralf & Florian's, but the tunes are absolute belters, and he's a wicked live artist too, possibly one of the best on the electronic dance music circuit nowadays – I danced my socks off when he played at Arvika last year.
Rother doesn't limit himself to one genre, though: he's experimented with many different styles and sounds. And that's where the trouble begins, so to speak. 'Cause while he's undoubtedly a master in the electro domain, some of his side projects like Family Lounge and PSI Performer have been very uneven, to say the least. So while I was excited about the prospect of a Rother ambient album on the legendary Fax label – after all, this guy should know how to create atmospheric soundscapes better than most – I was worried that it would be a bit of a let-down, too.
So what does it sound like? Well, one thing's for sure – if concise, defined songs are what you're looking for, you should run a mile, as this is a very low key, very subtle and very minimal record. With a limited arsenal of sounds and melodies (and the odd beat) at his disposal, Rother lets the music gradually unfold itself in a way that will demand your constant attention – otherwise, this will just be humming politely in the background and don't leave much of an impression. Demonstrating that understated atmospherics can be as effective as cascading, overblown pompousness, "Elixir of Life" is at its best when it succeeds in creating unsettling atmospheres where minor-scale melody cycles run on top of dark, droning undercurrents, such as in the quite brilliant track 9. You can argue that it takes too long before it gets to the point – for example, the abstract segment that constitutes track 7 will probably feel pretty pointless if listened to isolated – but the slow build-up of this album requires some near-silent moments for the more melodic passages to really stand out. At times, this music is so ascetic it's barely audible, but there is still a lot of subdued emotional drama at work here, and you probably have to listen to this without the distraction of other people around you to really appreciate it – isolationist music, indeed. Of course, parts of this disc has a lot in common with the majority of the music to be found in the ever-expanding vault of CD's released by Fax – whooshing, longdrawn ambience with so few ingredients that one can suspect that its creators don't devote much time or inspiration to compose it– but Rother has delivered one of the more intriguing releases of this kind that I've come across lately. It's not an essential record, but near-perfect listening for those sleepless night shifts. Check.
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