Carl Kruger - Sound Takes II FLAC album

Sound Takes II is a complex and frenetic exercise in electronic sound pastiche by experimental electronic artist carl kruger. From the moment you hit play it unleashes a torrent of cut up and transmogrified samples that roar and rush with a crystalline assault.

The tracks are short and move quickly (the whole release is just short of 24 minutes and fits on a 3 inch CD) and soon we find ourselves carried through some just brilliant drum and bass.

Well – when I say drum and bass, what I mean is that through the hails and blizzards of sound fragments emerge the shapes of electronic percussion. kruger has stitched these Frankenstein beats together from the corpses of many a found sound and the result is seriously funked out.

The rhythm patterns are catchy, unpredictable, off kilter and have a way of getting your head nodding without your realising.

Soon what becomes clear is that at times the raw noise itself can have the rhythmic effect of break beats – at times there is no sound audible that in any way resembles something from acoustic reality, yet the pulse and groove burns forward regardless.

Sometimes the alien character of the sounds makes the music sound arrhythmic, random. But it isn’t, and this auditory sleight of hand is a really fascinating effect to experience. At other times, of course, more recognisable beats come to the fore and they’re always artfully arranged and sound just compelling.

At points kruger draws on more recognisable samples – fragments of voices that he stretches, loops and fragments into bizarre shapes; or snatches of music which he re-interprets with surprising sensitivity and richness.

The release, as mentioned, moves very quickly. I really like the way that it deploys rapid tempos – they give it a smirking, laughing atmosphere, an exuberance that is somehow enhanced by the darkly alien aesthetic of the music.

While Sound Takes II stands alone very comfortably, I am also curious about what kruger could do in collaboration with a good vocalist. I think such a collaboration could create some really sensual, atmospheric and bewildering techno-pop; it might not succeed commercially but anyone into techno, trip hop or experimental electronica would find it very interesting indeed!

A word on the atmosphere of this recording: often there are layers and layers of noise, samples, ambience, drones, etc in the background. These rich arrangements very effectively draw my imagination to dream about anime megalopolises and frenetic cyberpunk futures.

kruger could do some amazing work as a sound track composer for science fiction films or the like; he could also manage the art of simultaneously confusing the heck out of a room full of dancers yet keeping them moving with wild abandon.

This is one of those rare experimental electronic releases that demonstrate a deep and sincere grasp of musicality (and not just a lazy contempt for form that stems from ignorance or incompetence).

Henry Lauer
Heathen Harvest