QEBO -
wroln
(CD, low impedance)
The influence that Aphex Twin, Planet Mu and the likes had on music in general
can not be underestimated. Like usual, there are hundreds of other musicians
in the shadow of those big names, and the important (and sometimes straining
and seemingly meaningless) task is to find the ones that really matter. It
seems to that I haven’t heard anything decent by Richard James in years
and even though the umpteenth birthday of Planet Mu resulted in some fine
music, I am looking for what is new. This search, in itself, is probably
wrong and a typical idea of people interested in music. If they write about
music, then the worse, because then they aren’t looking for music to
listen to, but also for music to write about, which results in looking for
something that is outrageously different to what was here before. Which a
lot of times results in wrong judgements and stupid hypes which by the way
of frustration feedback into the even more desperate search for something
new. What is the way out? Probably to stop looking for the breaks and leaps
in the evolution of music and to start looking for the gradual developments.
In any kind of journey, all the steps are important.
Qebo, for instance, have laid down one of those records
with “wroln” that cannot be labelled to mark a milestone. Not yet,
anway, but it shows a lot of interesting developments, some new ideas and
most important, a decent amount of originality. I mention the latter point
because especially in electronic music there is so much uninteresting music
floating about, it is sometimes sickening to just step inside a store and
look at the racks with vinyl and Compact Discs and knowing already, that it
will take a few hours to sift through trite shit to find some fine releases.
Qebo are not as harsh and effect-focused as four out of
five releases on Planet Mu and they are also less enigmatic and keen on
hiding inside the self-manufactured labyrinth as Aphex Twin, and because of
this probably more approachable and interesting to listen to. Moreover,
there is also more than enough interesting things to listen. The seven
tracks on “wroln” mainly consist of erratically jumping and changing
beats, that nevertheless manage to get out of all the chaos and magically
form a straight beat somewhere. Electronic noises, more percussions, skits
and samples fill up the holes in between and the manically shifting rhythm
makes for an overall impression of derangedness that must be a fine world to
party in. Because the music is never cold, never abrasive or detached. Quite
the opposite, albeit the ferocious beats and the manic changes inside the
music, the symptomatic loss of melody, this CD might catch the listener in a
good mood, make him or her feel good. This is not the soundtrack to urban
decay, and it is also not the soundtrack to the hedonistic beach club party
in Ibiza, but perhaps a few people getting together after a long night out
to party some more in somebodys hotelroom.
