Howling is the duo of RY X and Frank Wiedemann, a project in search of club music at its most nocturnal. With production nods from Burial and Jamie xx and vocals echoing the tenderness of Cigarettes After Sex and Rhye, the duo's sophomore record finds a nice meeting ground between hypnotic electronica and pulsing dance music. It's not a groundbreaking record, but Howling's feel for mesmerizing, textured dance music provides some quality moments across Colure's 13 tracks.
This texture comes in a number of different ways, the most notable of which includes the liberal use of acoustic instruments. The resounding piano chords on "Dew" provide a strong counterpoint to ambient, wordless vocals and synth work. Elsewhere, the stark pairing of piano and vocals on "Lover" makes for an effective combo, before the track takes the same chords and morphs into an extended dance cut.
Despite its not-so-groundbreaking premise, Wiedemann's production across Colure is impressive in the way that it finds new ways to surprise the listener. The record is a meticulously crafted fusion of yearning vocals and hypnotic electronics, with just the right blend of wistfulness and propulsive dance energy.
(Counter)This texture comes in a number of different ways, the most notable of which includes the liberal use of acoustic instruments. The resounding piano chords on "Dew" provide a strong counterpoint to ambient, wordless vocals and synth work. Elsewhere, the stark pairing of piano and vocals on "Lover" makes for an effective combo, before the track takes the same chords and morphs into an extended dance cut.
Despite its not-so-groundbreaking premise, Wiedemann's production across Colure is impressive in the way that it finds new ways to surprise the listener. The record is a meticulously crafted fusion of yearning vocals and hypnotic electronics, with just the right blend of wistfulness and propulsive dance energy.