- The title track of Pennsylvania-based Miskate's latest EP, as the title suggests, finds an alternately bouncing and pounding array of percussion over a 4/4 pulse punctuated by the distinct tones of a power drill, spinning at different frequencies to create notes and even a sort of a hook. Scream "gimmick" all you like, but it works a treat—imagining these sounds pumping through a giant system sends shivers down the spine. The trend of dropping massive grinding noises over a nifty rhythm track started in earnest back with tracks like Audion's "Mouth to Mouth" and Shane Berry's "Fillertet 2," but apparently it hasn't run its course quite yet. It may not be much for home listening, but "Drillbit" is sure to find favor in many a DJ crate.
Two versions of "What You Want" round out the EP. The original builds beats from the bottom up, injected from time to time with spooky echoes and bursts of noise and woven with some dark treated vocal snippets. It eventually builds into a nice little track with a busy and varied sound palette, but the higher marks go to Barem's remix. Upping the tempo and clearing away most of the sonic detritus to create a lean and funky groove, Barem follows the "less is more" maxim, peppering the track with short bits of effects and noises rather than shoving them all in the track at once.
Minimal as we know it is bound to change sooner or later, but with releases like this still hitting the streets with regularity and finding a devoted audience, perhaps those calling for a revolution will have to wait a bit longer than anticipated. Judging from the results of her latest EP, at least, Kate Iwanowicz apparently didn't get the memo that minimal is dead.
Lista de sequência de músicas A1 Drillbit (12" Edit)
A2 What You Want
B1 What You Want (Barem Remix)