Heady Essen event crew, label and studio The Third Room drops the second slice of its “Stone Techno” series, available on both limited wax and digital.
The collective’s concept of “The Third Room” comes from philosopher Homi K. Bhabha, referring to a place where “different cultures can exist and correlate to each other, mix, and transform into hybrids;” a space of cultural exchange, fusing musical styles and overcoming boundaries. A worthy goal indeed of any event outfit seeking to communicate in the language of the musical underground.
It’s important to note that this team has been producing techno events in one of the most unusual venues in all of Europe, much like Kazantip began in an old nuclear reactor. Called “Mischanlage”, imagine raving in a dystopian, monolithic, former coal processing plant, an industrial relic of postwar Germany, a protected UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its history as well as architecture. Bare steel, broken and jutting concrete, ghosts of workers, and lives past. Perfect for techno. In one photo we saw ravers in a pool that was set smack dab in the middle of the plant’s grounds. The ravers . . . warm, colorful, vibrating with life; their surroundings cold, grey, industrial, broken. Uncanny imagery.
The dichotomy of such a unique atmosphere cannot be overstated, and names such as Antigone, Colin Benders, Speedy J, Efdemin, Helena Hauff, Oscar Mulero, and Ostgut Ton crew have all contributed their stylings. Conceptually pushing off of this rare location, The Third Room recently began its “Stone Techno” series, a unique collaboration with Dr. Achim Reisdorf, Geologist at the Ruhr Museum Foundation and Kurt Gluck (Ohm Resistance). Since Mischanlage marks an “historical era of modern industrialized society”, and was itself built from stone and minerals originating from the Ruhr region, they decided to sample the sounds of those raw materials to create a huge sample bank, processed with analog gear for good measure. How such sampling was done is unclear, but what is crystal clear are the hefty names which were given these samples to create their own interpretations and soundscapes and grooves: Dax J, Efdemin, FJAAK, Hadone, Inhalt der Nacht, Jamaica Suk, Matrixxman, Nene H, Oscar Mulero, RØDHÅD and many more.
For this, the Cubic EP, second installment of the “Stone Techno Series”, our contributors to this release are Matrixxman, RØDHÅD, Yan Cook, and VNNN, a pedigreed and well decorated bunch.
Matrixxman, known for his punchy, raw productions, surprises us right away with the A1 cut aptly named “Sounds for Rocks”. We were expecting a pounding groove, but instead are treated to a dense ambient exploration befitting its name, albeit in a completely unexpected way. Beatless, this gem resonates with deep crystalline frequencies that explore the beauty within the grey, hypnotic subdued worlds residing within bedrock. Strange unhuman movements punctuate the dark. As the textures swell and fade, beginnings and endings are implied, infinite endings, infinite beginnings. These layers do not put at ease, nor do they frighten or create too much tension. They just ARE, glued by cavernous space. The mix itself howls gently in an elemental hum.
After such a contemplative journey, RØDHÅD’s “Erosion” feels PERFECT, dropping in with a shuffling kick pattern that bounces in a broken proto-groove. A haunting tone modulates on top, presumably one of the mineral samples … it warbles and sings, often with haunting urgency but not an abrasive energy. As the primeval rhythm section pulses in its heartbeat, conjuring an ancient world long gone, a single bell-like tone appears, creating a bright percussive counterpoint, like the light of a new idea that could change everything.
Yan Cook, one of our favorite artists, goes in a different direction. His production takes perhaps a more “human” approach, exploring the industrial nature of the subject matter, rhythms banged out with metal tones, conjuring classic industrial, factory themes. Dubbed out delays accent these metal clangs, as a modulating sustained hollow synth adds even more tension on top. The track is called “Iris Agate” but what we are seeing in our mind’s eye is the coal factory in full production, workers milling about, pipe stacks billowing in the background.
Wrapping up the record is VNNN’s “Groove Attack”, a very understated number that’s difficult to describe verbally but rather demands an ear. It is characterized by an unusual synth that cuts in and out, seemingly unpredictably, which in industrial terms disrupts a listener’s comfort zone– but the underlying groove is extremely deep and hypnotic. This one is massive but grooves very gently. This duality creates the underlying tension and sound world of this tune, projecting its own five-and-a-half minute universe that undulates with late, late, late night energy.
The vinyl is 180gr, so this unusual conceptual release is clearly being treated with much love, limited to a run of 300 copies. Listen on Bandcamp.
-Nicolaas Black
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