Koett – Golden Peak
We had the Lost Time single from Russia’s Koett a few months ago but nothing else. He’s a new album Golden Peak out today, so I thought we ought to have a little listen. Leftfield downtempo dance is the order of the day. Free download.
Golden Peak is one of those albums that’s really hard to categorise. That’s a good thing, right? Not always. For one thing, it makes it a bugger to review. But for another it makes listening a joyous experience. Opener Assembled has a charming simplicity of some tin drums and an ascending melody line. But underneath there’s lots more going on that only discloses itself on repeated listens. Behind takes a little twangy bass, some sampled acoustic guitar and some choral samples to go for an early Polyphonic Spree experience in upliftingness. Blacksad goes back to something that’s a bit more dance-orientated and a bit Selected Ambient Works. Only with Careless do things move into something unfocused and disposable. Lost Time is proper 60s hipster music. A little goatee. But done so well, you can’t help but give yourself up to the flutiness of it all.
The title track is a change of direction, in that Golden Peak goes a bit cosmic disco. I Am Fly stays with the spaciousness theme and some sad Rhodes chords. Down goes for epic ands up unfocused. All a bit kitchen sink such that it collapses under the weight of complexity. Dew gathers itself into a sad little package, full of aches from the world. Closer, That’s Stuart is another odd one. An almost country & western vocal, plus lounge swing provides a suitably odd ending to a charming little album.
Buy
Blurb: From ambient interludes that could soundtrack a short film, to lively acid jazz all the way through to spacious funk and introspective yet soulful, techno inspired workouts, Koett (who’s real name is Aleksander Tochilkin) deftly weaves through the gamut of electronic machine music. Having released under a number of names between 2005 and 2012 and following strong house and techno releases on FUSELab and Dabit Records, Koett has pinned down his sound for his ‘Golden Peak’ album, creating a cogent record that drips with creativity. “Golden Peak” once more serves as reminder that the Russian music scene is alive and kicking and with fellow countrymen Pixelord, Monokle and DZA already flying the flag for a scene it is not a stretch of the imagination to believe we will be hearing a lot more emerge from the mega state in the coming years. The artwork for the release is by Alex Coll, a surrealistic artist that utilizes the medium of collage to create his posters and works.
(Pre)-Order: http://atomnation.bandcamp.com/album/golden-peak
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