Altrd Being’s first LP, out on Illegal Alien Records, propulses us into deep space while simultaneously taking us on an intimate journey that mesmerizingly blends techno and ambient through layered and beautifully complex sound design.
Altrd Being is a Hondurian DJ and producer whose distinct musical aesthetic has made its mark in techno communities around the globe, from the United States to Europe. He has notably created strong connections with the Los Angeles underground scene, both as a solo artist and as the half of Motionen. His contribution to his own AltRd Music label, as well as the Ascetic Limited project stemming from his collaboration with Secus, demonstrate his will to maintain agency over his own work and thus uphold his personal vision and artistry.
After a significant number of releases and performances in some of the most respected venues in the world, Altrd Being is releasing his very first full-length album. Entitled “Endeavour’s First Flight,” this LP uses a reference to space exploration to deliver an inward journey of self-discovery through lushes of hypnotic techno and ambient. The highly personal nature of this album is reflected in its limited edition release as a cassette tape, thus inviting the public to delve into an individual listening experience, not necessarily associated with the dancefloor.
The first seconds of “Stop Thinking Change Settings,” the first entry to the LP, announce Altrd Being’s intent to manipulate the spatiality of sound: a faint melody looms in the background and becomes increasingly close, before the full power of the track is revealed. A crisp and deep beat blends in with ambient-inspired sonic environments and distorted spoken words, in a densely layered structure that brilliantly conveys the world of space travel. “Adeliade” continues on this path of atmosphere-driven hypnosis, dazzling us with its reflective echoes.
A more straight-forward and stripped-down physicality is brought forth in “All The Love Gone Bad,” as the producer embraces the linearity of the techno genre to enhance the narrative of his concept-driven album. The sheer intensity we find in the rhythmicality and the treatment of bass also communicates a sense of resilience, which may be interpreted as a response to the hardships of subjective experience. By contrast, “Endeavoir STS49” is softer and places more emphasis on its ethereally ambient sonorities, while retaining an other-worldly groove.
Up next, “Good Work Pay It Forward” emerges as the most vigorous track in the LP, with a heavy beat and acid-drenched leads reminiscing the wonderfully eerie sounds of old school techno. While we are immersed in the deep and relentless kick crafted by the artist, the lead shifts and transforms in an intoxicating way, which generates a form of energetic impetus. The broken down beat of “Tare Me Apart” marks a sharp contrast to the conventionality of its predecessor’s approach to dance music, and sets up a more contemplative end for the album.
Strictly beatless, “Think Forward Think Back” fully delves into ambient and offers a textured voyage into new conceptualizations of space, beyond the emptiness of the void and into strangely populated dreamscapes. Altrd Being opens a portal to another dimension and takes us down a path of self-exploration through his cinematic sonic world. “1998 QE2” is a fascinating conclusion that turns towards the past by incorporating samples from acoustic instruments, while looking forward through a futuristic beat. Old and new collapse in a beautiful arrangement, that leaves many of the introspective inquiries of the album insightfully open-ended.
-Theophile Gatte
Stream here: Soundcloud
Buy here: Bandcamp
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