Merveille & Crosson

After collaborating on two EPs that laid the framework for their new project, and are included on DRM, Cadenza's Cesar Merveille and Visionquest's Ryan Crosson have continued to explore the fringes of after-hours tech-house, reshaping it with elements of jazz, instrumental post-rock and ambient. DRM is a complex and unpredictable collection of tracks, but that's what makes the album so appealing. While the duo have embraced subtle soundscapes, tense melodies and plodding rhythms on some cuts, on others, such as "Again & Again," they're experimenting with more entangled arrangements built from understated pianos, freeform jazz horns, subdued guitars and almost chaotic sounding percussion patterns that shuffle and rattle like they're at the brink of falling apart. Merveille and Crosson embrace Visionquest's mind-expanding ethos on meandering tracks like "No Hassle," "Orca" and "Escale," reinterpreting ideas about rhythm and melody in creative and sometimes challenging ways. DRM is an eclectic debut from two free-spirited electronic producers.