PRICE:
$17.00$14.45
IN STOCK
ARTIST
TITLE
Inside
FORMAT
CD

LABEL
CATALOG #
DESOLAT 003CD DESOLAT 003CD
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
10/26/2010

This the first release on Desolat for Spain's Pulshar, who are emerging as true musical heavyweights, with compositions that traverse the borderlands between spacious song-craft and the futuristic outer-reaches of the dub-techno universe. After receiving widespread critical acclaim for his various solo projects and remixes in 2009, Inside sees Pablo Bolivar reunited with the tender tenor tones of Aphro Sainz. On tracks like "Da Creator" and "Montparnasse 2am," an easy house groove takes its time rolling out languidly, while mild melancholia, sample stabs and outer-space delays hark back to the heyday of On-U: a synthetic interpretation of King Tubby's legacy that would sparkle in the early hours at a tech-house beach party. "Montparnasse 2am" incorporates eerie soundtrack fragments that explicate the duo's love of classic cinema, and the penultimate track, "Above The Wall" provides another filmic fragment: with surf guitar twangs atop a blissful doo-wop haze. A little magic goes a long way, and the light shines bright on some of the more pop-filtered tunes, such as the whistling nuance of "United States Of Pulshar." With its plaintive, optimistic melody repeated like a hip-hop sample and burbling synth touches, it could stand as a manifesto for the project. "California State Of Mind" lassoes elements of today's West Coast beats scene and the synth-funk that preceded it, adding a tuneful dubby touch and letting everything melt together, while "S.T.A.R.S". and "Distant Fire" incorporate post-garage patterns and weighty bass, showing the full arc of dub's development. The two pay respect to their dub forefathers in a more literal manner on cleanly-polished gems like "Empty Suitcase" and "Stepping Stones," a collaboration between Pulshar and Roberto Sanchez, who is a leading figure in the European roots reggae scene. Pulshar encompass the world of reggae influences and incorporate everything in their own distinctive, forward-looking style.