Yan Cook self-releases “Distorted Memories” for a must-have EP of pure Techno heat on digital and vinyl off his own Cooked Imprint this past week.
If you want to talk about pure, unadulterated Techno masters, Yan Cook has to rank up there as one of the most proficient and consistent producers in Techno’s recent history. Yan Cook continues to serve up the absolute best with every release to his Techno following, all while exploring his digital art creations and under the constant existential threat of a Russian Kalibr or Kinjal missile randomly taking out an apartment block in his home city of Kyiv.
The style of this release is definitely a follow-up from his excellent “XXX” album release. “Distorted Memories” offers a groove of just the right amount of elements and the right dialed-in reverb settings that has pushed him above the rest. Yan Cook’s clean edges mixed with this dark soul and effective synthesis methods are mixed to create strong tension and release in the elements. Nothing too flashy—just a strong knowledge of what’s the most effective at creating a very sick and ill feeling in each track.
For example, the title track is really a simple track of a few elements, but the atmosphere and how all the parts are filled in to meet with each other and hold space for each other really interacts well. From the phased chorded part to the rising strings that meet the fall of the filtering in the chorded sequence, all creative needs in the tracks are met well with ease. This is a theme that’s repeated in “Sweat” and “Reason” as well, though “Crab” seems to be a satisfying curiosity in the Broken Techno realm. The twisted Broken Techno elements are somewhat reminiscent of the Breakbeat in his track “Hope” last year, but he dives right into the funkiness of the groove and keeps the tension synths sounding ill rather than wistful. Additionally, Yan includes a ripping acid line to explore new territories outside of what’s become his bread-and-butter, deep, dark, and grooving style.
This “Distorted Memories” EP is yet another stellar release from one of the masters of Techno in the game right now. The fact that he’s self-released the EP proves he feels really confident to stand on his own two feet with this music. Even going so far as putting his money where his mouth is with a 12” vinyl release. Not cheap in this day and age, but the release is standing at €10 so it’s super hard to pass up, especially since the resale market once this sells out will probably double or exceed €50 in a year’s time. Definitely worth the cop to hold onto one of the most outstanding releases this year.
-Sean Ocean
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