Long before there were Barber Beats, there was Kruder und Dorfmeister, TOSCA, maybe you put some Thievery Corporation in there; the downtempo stuff.
I got so into that sound in the early aughts that it turned me into an addict.
Going into this, I'm wondering what I'm gonna get.
hits play*
"Falling Leaves" is a great opener, especially with temperatures cooling down, at least where I'm at.
It's the hollowed out glowing sound of the keys and the warmth of the sax and when it all comes together, it's beautiful, and opulent. Makes me feel like Dale Denton when he says "I wanna live in here," in Pineapple Express.
Also, while we're "shooting up"; in a similar vein, Saul Silver is playing "Bird's Lament" by Moondog in the background, which is a lot like this.
If that sounds familiar, you might be thinking about "Get A Move On" by Mr. Scruff, which sampled that Moondog track and is more beat heavy. It also puts us closer to the jazz-like quality of "Falling Leaves," unfortunately it doesn't last.
Suddenly, Machina Pensant is dragging me out of my "living space," kicking and screaming into the sun light of "Mountains Horizon".
This track is way too bright for my tastes, but "Liner Notes" gets me cozy again.
The build up is minimal, starting off with simple three notes on the keys, add percussion and then, when the barber beats – that Machina is known for – kick in... That's when the kush hits you!
"You" meaning me.
Now, I'm back in my little happy space.
Your music deserves a cult following!
If the first three tracks of me internalizing this album isn't your thing, let's go out into the city, which is where "No More Worries" takes us.
I think it's the vinyl scratch throwback which I attribute the city vibe to cause, I'm a city guy through and through.
"Dreams Rewritten" goes into mall soft territory, and Machina keeps it luxurious with "Sambinha", showing his Brazilian origins.
I spent plenty of time with Bossa Nova sounds when I was a downtempo addict and obsessed over the works of Brazilian producers. Specifically, Suba in relation to this release.
"Jumping From Dream to Dream" stands out most to me because of the enharmonic elements, which are more prominently displayed adding more atmosphere to the album. I think this is where we get to the liminal spaces of audio I was expecting and it doesn't disappoint.
Speaking for myself, it's the enharmonic tone in any album that hold my attention the most and there is a lot of that in Early Mediations. It adds a darker aesthetic to it which I'm all about.
Closing the album, "Um Pouco Mais de Nós (A Little More About Us)" has that touch of Bossa Nova I was "mainlining" back in the day, while being dream inducing at the same time.
Initially, my approach to listening to this was in the context of being labeled as barber beats and discriminatory. My thinking was that it's just downtempo rebranded even when barber beats are said to be specific to the vaporwave genre.
In listening to this, I see the barber beat genre is more defined.
Who would know better than Lucas Alves Diesel AKA ｂｌａｎｋ世界? An artist who lives in among the liminal spaces of music and knows how to walk that line?
Tell me. WHO!?
What are your thoughts on this release?