- When you hear the terms "dubstep" and "America," the next word that probably springs to mind is "Skrillex." There's definitely more interesting stuff coming from the US of A, however; it's just a little harder to find. Based in Miami, Dubporn Records are one such imprint attempting to turn the genre in another direction. Thus far they've been doing pretty well, this being their fifth record since starting back in April. That said, much of their material isn't actually local. Prymara, for instance, comes from a Ukrainian artist.
The only problem with this particular EP from the label is a lack of deliberateness. Often, backing pads or other incidental sounds feel arbitrarily placed, with incongruous chord progressions to match. It's as if Reixtra composed each percussive skeleton (which are interesting in themselves) and then thought, "That's too sparse, I need to come up with some stuff to fill in the gaps." Otherwise, there's not a great deal to complain about. In pursuing eerie atmospheres, the record certainly hits the mark. "FtM" and "MtF" do best in this regard, pairing miniscule bells with vast space and shivering pads. From both, the resulting mental image is something like an abandoned music box playing in a dark, dilapidated mansion.
In "Without Your Charming Smile," "Neverliving" and "Evpatorian Tram," harsher sounds come to the fore. Without the focus that a pretty melody affords, they more or less fall into the aforementioned trap of arbitrary composition, despite several interesting ideas. "Pregnancy" and "Prymara" are the strongest of the collection. The former is set to a gentle amniotic pulse, tying in light pieces of piano and hints of child voice. In the title track, several layers of piano are comingled to create a frantic edge, with more bell-based interludes breaking up the intensity.
Lista de sequência de músicas 01. Prymara
02. Neverliving
03. Pregnancy
04. Evpatorian Tram
05. Without Your Charming Smile
06. FtM
07. MtF