While it seems like most modern producers are interested solely in texture (Hudson Mohawke, Rustie), mood (Crystal Castles, Evian Christ) or shifting tones (AraabMUZIK, Clams Casino), Peter Runge (a.k.a. Sd Laika) has attempted to create an entire album built around timing and sequencing. Drawing comparisons to early Warp Records pioneers like Autechre or Plaid, That's Harakiri, the debut LP from the Milwaukee-based knob twiddler, works off of bent melodies, sped up bass lines and colliding rhythms.
That's not to say that the 11 songs that make up Sd Laika's debut full-length don't benefit from impenetrable textures, moods or tones, as tracks like "Great God Pan," "Meshes" and "It's Ritual" utilize multiple production styles to craft converging, confounding melodies. Combining dissonant feedback, clinical beats and incomprehensible vocal samples, tracks like "Remote Heaven" and "Percressing" rely on Sd Laika's unique song structures to give them their beguiling qualities. On That's Harakiri, Sd Laika seemingly bucks myriad electronic music trends to create a body of work that harkens back to the genre's classic beginnings.
(Tri Angle)That's not to say that the 11 songs that make up Sd Laika's debut full-length don't benefit from impenetrable textures, moods or tones, as tracks like "Great God Pan," "Meshes" and "It's Ritual" utilize multiple production styles to craft converging, confounding melodies. Combining dissonant feedback, clinical beats and incomprehensible vocal samples, tracks like "Remote Heaven" and "Percressing" rely on Sd Laika's unique song structures to give them their beguiling qualities. On That's Harakiri, Sd Laika seemingly bucks myriad electronic music trends to create a body of work that harkens back to the genre's classic beginnings.
