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LP
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DIFFLP 002LP
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Chevel gives the prism-pushers at Mumdance and Logos' Different Circles label their first album release with Always Yours; a slanted new take on the "weightless" paradigm, floating somewhere between headspaces associated with the styles of Lee Gamble, Actress, and Logos. Paradoxically the longest and yet most minimalistic release on Different Circles to date, Always Yours says its piece in succinct yet expansive terms, rendering precisely tooled rhythms and technoid motifs in acres of suspenseful emulated space in a way that connects the brutally efficient dynamic of late '90s tech-step with a Raster Noton-like appreciation of pointillist reduction. In that imagined space Chevel moves like a Soviet gymnast or prototype robot fluidly executing a demanding routine full of intricate, rigid steps. From the ambient airlock of "One Evening In July" he pulls off the aerobic mid-air swiftness of "The Call", which comes off like a syncopated Sleeparchive workout, before twisting into the knotted quasi-step of "Bullet" and stepping into hyperspace on "Arp 2600". Another ambient interlude "Warming Bath" returns the LP to balmier states, before the jagged pulse of "Data Recovery" pulls back into the dance like a virulent Alva Noto piece, and "Dem Drums" pitch to the rave's darker side, but ultimately the lushly self-explanatory "Underwater" and "Always Yours" keep the LP hovering around the edge of ecstasy and the abyss with a grasp of heady, day-after feelings known to ravers the world over. Cover photo by Yusuke Yamatani. Vinyl master and cut by Matt Colton at Alchemy.
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12"
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SA 025EP
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Chevel follows his 2015 album Blurse (STROBO 006CD/003LP) with four remixes of album tracks. Paula Temple's remix of "Stranded" blasts into the listener's headspace with a prowling bass and radioactive zaps that contrast unexpectedly well with the placid synth swells of the original. The angular funk machine of Lee Gamble's remix of "Watery Drumming" is interrupted by alien chatter before Perc's remix of "Heimweh" mixes of time-reversed drones, shivering organ, and spectral winds. Minor Science's remix of "Loop #42" lays down sheets of glittering, rippling texture atop a curious and exploratory bass pulse.
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2LP
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STROBO 003LP
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Double LP version. Over the course of his career, Chevel (aka Dario Tronchin) has gained a mastery over slow melodic fades and sharp ricocheting beats, honing an ability to transport the listener. On Blurse, these elements come into play immediately; euphoric introduction "Comb" is marked by a spectral panning sequence and beats chopped with a culinary expert's sense of elegance. The drum-kit-sounds that feature throughout are used sparingly but deliver maximum impact upon the listener's nervous system. The block percussion on "The Windrunner" and "Low Roof" perfectly complements the synthetic sheen produced by fuzz distortion, radio static, and bandpass-filtered soundbites, taking the listener to a terrain where a palette of decay effects provides just as much aesthetic inspiration as the presence of technological advancement. There is more than enough humor and playfulness at work here, too, helping to once again banish the persistent stereotype of the modern techno producer as a sterile technician; the queasy melody line and the sliced-and-diced whistling, gelatinous bounce of "Loop #33" recall a child's playtime wonder more than they do the rarefied rigor of the laboratory. The less pulsating numbers like "Loop #42" and closer "A Form of Love" engage the listener as well, evoking short films of abiogenesis (the process of life arising from non-living matter). These tracks are not so much interludes or contemplative retreats from the action as they are enhancers of it, utilizing fluttering cycles of melody to engage in a kind of conversation with the more driving tracks. As to the driving tracks themselves, the places to which they drive the listener are satisfyingly beyond everyday experience. In other words, despite the consistency of Chevel's sonic toolkit and overall atmosphere, there is a rich variety in the emotional color on display here. The net effect is like a dream-state that echoes long after waking, though one can't pinpoint exactly why -- compelling the listener to dive back into the dream-pool to experience it again.
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CD
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STROBO 006CD
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Over the course of his career, Chevel (aka Dario Tronchin) has gained a mastery over slow melodic fades and sharp ricocheting beats, honing an ability to transport the listener. On Blurse, these elements come into play immediately; euphoric introduction "Comb" is marked by a spectral panning sequence and beats chopped with a culinary expert's sense of elegance. The drum-kit-sounds that feature throughout are used sparingly but deliver maximum impact upon the listener's nervous system. The block percussion on "The Windrunner" and "Low Roof" perfectly complements the synthetic sheen produced by fuzz distortion, radio static, and bandpass-filtered soundbites, taking the listener to a terrain where a palette of decay effects provides just as much aesthetic inspiration as the presence of technological advancement. There is more than enough humor and playfulness at work here, too, helping to once again banish the persistent stereotype of the modern techno producer as a sterile technician; the queasy melody line and the sliced-and-diced whistling, gelatinous bounce of "Loop #33" recall a child's playtime wonder more than they do the rarefied rigor of the laboratory. The less pulsating numbers like "Loop #42" and closer "A Form of Love" engage the listener as well, evoking short films of abiogenesis (the process of life arising from non-living matter). These tracks are not so much interludes or contemplative retreats from the action as they are enhancers of it, utilizing fluttering cycles of melody to engage in a kind of conversation with the more driving tracks. As to the driving tracks themselves, the places to which they drive the listener are satisfyingly beyond everyday experience. In other words, despite the consistency of Chevel's sonic toolkit and overall atmosphere, there is a rich variety in the emotional color on display here. The net effect is like a dream-state that echoes long after waking, though one can't pinpoint exactly why -- compelling the listener to dive back into the dream-pool to experience it again.
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12"
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NONSERIES 017EP
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Part one of two. Non Series presents its third release of 2015, following Mark Broom's Attitude (NONSERIES 015EP) and Savas Pascalidis's Nightshades (NONSERIES 016EP). Backward Loops, from Italian producer Chevel (Stroboscopic Artefacts, Enklav.), is spread over two separate records, this 12" and Backward Loops II (NONSERIES 018EP).
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12"
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NONSERIES 018EP
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Part two of two. Non Series presents its third release of 2015, following Mark Broom's Attitude (NONSERIES 015EP) and Savas Pascalidis's Nightshades (NONSERIES 016EP). Backward Loops, from Italian producer Chevel (Stroboscopic Artefacts, Enklav.), is spread over two separate records, this 12" and Backward Loops I (NONSERIES 017EP).
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12"
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MISTY 003EP
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The third and perhaps strongest release on Beneath's label Mistry canters to the dancefloor with two deft, blocky riddims by Enklav. founder Chevel. Working within a framework of percolating bleeps and splintered percussion greased with oily Reese and 808 bass, the Italian producer unfurls two lean, mean productions every bit as shark-eyed and skunked-out as his remix on Webstarr's Aegrus/Clocked (MISTY 002EP). On the A-side, the icy countenance of "Tank" is primed at a 115-bpm swagger. The B-side, "Beaviane," yokes Tessela-style drums to a cooler hustle before dropping an infectious twist. For fans of Hodge, Swing Ting, Alex Coulton.
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12"
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NONSERIES 014EP
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Chevel's Air Is Freedom remixes comes from Happa, Leeds-based producer on the rise, and Parisian dancefloor prodigy French Fries.
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12"
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SA 022EP
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The third release for Stroboscopic Artefacts in 2014 is from Italian producer Chevel. One Month Off is an EP built around the abstract themes of construction, starting with demolition and ending on perspective. The title-track combines a warm thump with skittering percussion and ragged cymbals build pressure. On "The Wall" there is little linear impetus, with a panoply of syncopated beats and foreign noises from the undergrowth. "Cave Dwellings" is a more organic construct, building from the traditional basics of a kick-drum and hi-hat. "Marker Shop" unites disparate urges and glorious moods, and "Viewpoint" provides a warmer perspective -- an uncompromising marriage of nature and noise.
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