Hamburg’s OFF/GRID brings a stern and focused look to his chord-fueled dub techno styles, bringing a tight and grooving fast-paced feel to his latest offering, “Circular Motions” off The Third Room imprint.
Robert Lienau, known more simply as OFF/GRID, has championed a few styles over the years, dabbling in classic, cut-up, loop-based techno to even a smattering of Drum ’n’ Bass on his “Time to Shine”. But the most prevalent concepts that have been running through his music, much like a vein of quartz in a rock, is this idea of faster and trimmed down dub-influenced techno.
Here on this release, “Circular Motions,” it’s very much present, but the mood is a bit more dark and grim. Adding to it, there’s a good sense of compression and firmly controlled modulation. OFF/GRID is keenly aware of what is “a bridge too far” when it comes to a parameter, and he will absolutely not let the audience have it. It’s this sense of control that brings a focused intensity without saying too much at all. As a regular punter might listen to this, they will feel like these rhythms are deceptively simple, but what’s communicated is a very strong sense of control, which is definitely one of the main thematic concepts of modern techno. Reserved, composed, and the ability to say to their audience, “I have you, let go.”
A key track on the EP for describing this concept would be “Play No Games,” where the dub echoes could easily float away on their own if there was not a concerted effort to make sure they were reeled in and remained in concert with the tightly fitting groove of the track. Nothing is given away, and even the dub chords themselves are more or less detuned to convey a strong presence that is tough, but also not too aggressive.
Other tracks that feature on the release, “Shivers” and “Constant Expression”, also carry on this idea but with tension-building pads matched with slowly mod-ed distorted dub chorded synths.
The outlier on the EP is the more bass-focused and grooving “Bloody Raindrops”, which presumably is about beating your body to a frothy pulp with bass. Which, admittedly, on a big enough sound system you may need to check if a limb is still attached… it could happen.
The takeaway from the “Circular Motions” EP is that in all cases, when you listen to a musician, see a work of art, or watch a dancer in motion, everyone loves to see someone who’s absolutely in control of their performance and knows exactly what they are doing. In the “Circular Motions” EP, this is an undercurrent of tension that carries the whole release. OFF/GRID knows exactly what he’s doing and his expert sense of control will leave you with a new appreciation for his music.
-Sean Ocean
