Architect
Consume Adapt Create

The new release by Daniel ‘Architect’ Myer is major stuff! It comes directly from Hymen headquarters, a label that has hosted heavyweights like Venetian Snares, Otto Von Schirach, Wisp, Esplendor Geométrico, Gridlock. We are talking about one of the most interesting electronic novelties of 2010, where so far quite mediocre albums like Further, Oversteps, Heligoland, Swim, have been overhyped. Daniel (for those who don’t know, half of Haujobb, unforgettable masterpiece “Ninetynine”) with his fifth Architect offers us a sound slightly different from the latter, but equally revolutionary. 

“A hybrid between minimalist drum ’n’ bass and ambient territories”

This is how the seasoned German producer presents it to us, a definition that while somewhat apt, it's also very narrow and reductive. Because "Consume Adapt Create" is not just the -admittedly not new- combination of break-beats and ambient backdrops; there is much more: experimentation (not a lot but enough to satisfy the less conformist tastes), power (plenty), ideas (we are still talking about mister Haujobb, after all), sound (one of the best masterings heard in recent years) [by Frank Marheneike], technique (needless to say, very high) and finally atmosphere (overall a secondary detail, but very effective in the final mix).

Dark atmospheres, ambient flickers, complex and powerful breaks (the acid “Unhuman” are terrifying), spasmodic layers of noise in constant background (extra programming by Normotone and Klima, specialized in power noise), rare but incisive vocals (by Maurizio Blanco from Klangstabil, another great project from the same label) are the main ingredients of the album. As a good German, Myer heavily draws from all teutonic electro-industrial stuff (“For You” could be the classic dirty track from Neuf Noir or Alfa Matrix), and from crystal-clear soundscapes of various krautrockers in IDM reissue (“Unhuman reprise”, “Wachsmuth”, futuristic vintage). The other heavy influence is unexpectedly dubstep, but preferring the more techno and deep approach to the dance floor-oriented one: tracks like “The Bitch Is Back”, “Fast Lane”, “Attack Ships On Fire” employ typical broken rhythms, but are surrounded by sinister dark-ambient parts, glitch, and abrasive sounds reminiscent of industrial aggrotech acts like Xotox and Suicide Commando. All with the usual pounds of reverb, which will return more imposing than ever in apocalyptic/horror-souled moments like “Pure” and “The Shadow Of Eve”.

The best side of Myer are the rhythms (following the path set with Haujobb) and the breaks, always very technical and intricate, with a broad use of glitchophile effects reminiscent of early Venetian Snares in the heavier tracks like “So I Went Out” and “Awake”. On “The Beauty And The Beat” (perhaps the least ambitious episode of the platter, but a real train) we witness a meeting between modern commercial drum ’n’ bass (Pendulum, Qemists, Sub Focus) and more rhythmic and glitchy IDM (Tipper, Gridlock, Uwe Schmidt) with a fantastic angelic vocal sample added. Very original is “I Lost My 808 On A Rainy Day”, which as the title suggests features drums from Roland 808, repetitive vocal, upfront bassline and old-school riff clearly referencing 70s electro styles (Cybotron, Davy DMX..) but in a current key and with an appropriate ambient texture undergrowth.

Thick, scratchy, break-heavy, distorted electronics...but absolutely not pointless (good Toecutter?). In the links, the best tracks: unmissable!