Truesoul continues to be a guiding light for principle and passion within the Drumcode camp with the 3rd release, “Isopod”, featuring slow, epic, and very ill Techno and House from enigmatic artist Close Relative.
Say what you want about Drumcode, but they’ve consistently released a stream of quality tracks that their audience loves and sing praises for time and time again. While the Drumcode label might be audience driven, there’s always a passion as well in their Truesoul sister label—consistently pursuing the deeper and groovier side of Techno that comes from the heart.
This time, Truesoul goes with what seems to be an unknown artist with all the chops and expert skill. One almost might want to bet money on guessing just who this could be. Truesoul only reveals that Close Relative is the alter ego of a still anonymous, but well-established Techno producer who’s exploring a more nature-inspired, melodic, and intriguing musical side. This kind of speculation is something that the Techno scene loves. It has a real love affair with simultaneously not wanting to know but also spreading rumors about who it could be. At the end of the day, if the music wasn’t that great and the artist was still unknown, it would matter even less. But the music on this “Isopod” EP is pretty fantastic, as are the other 2 Truesoul EPs released by Close Relative.
Like the previous release, “Salt”, Close Relative further investigates nature themes from the sea, such as deep ocean-dwelling crustaceans and mollusks as evidenced by “Isopod”, “Oyster”, and “Plankton” as track titles. Thematically, each part of the music references a part of the animal, such as the legs on “Isopod”. The deep underwater vibes of “Oyster” feature a tom and clave hinting at a shell while the pads compare to the surrounding deep green ocean. “Plankton” rounds out the theme with a small high hat and drums in a vast ocean with the light slowly filtering downward alongside the detritus and algae from the surface falling to feed the plankton.
Aside from the thematic considerations, and speculations about the artist’s identity, each track has its own merit and qualities to signify that the themes of each are just seeds for creative thoughts. The track’s qualities focus on groove and slower rhythms to allow more elements breathing room within each mix. It also allows for more anticipation and the ability to build tension within the tracks. The high-level synth in the title track paired against the arpeggiator and the loose claps lead to a very intense break that goes off with a serious understated groove. “Oyster” presents a similar idea conceptually, with a head-nodding distorted synth evolving with its tails to legato and staccato over time. The “Plankton” embodies a classic ‘80s vibe with the step-up arpeggio across a classically Techno chugging bass line has a nod to Synth Wave and also wouldn’t feel out of place in a faster set if sped up.
If we were to touch on the idea of ‘ill’ music for a second, no other tracks like “Plankton” are pursuing such a vital and seriously sick side of Dance Music. Everything in the scene is sort of just so, and it is kind of sad. People have gone from twisted and hard beats to merely impressive—either it’s really big or arbitrarily fast, or arbitrarily dark. This means that the music is a bit more overhyped and doesn’t rely on an easier attained dark presence that holds more weight with less work. With ill music, it is guaranteed to give any audience that fists in the air response and dimpled chin of approval. That leaves a deeper lasting impression. Thank you to Close Relative and Truesoul for that reminder.
-Sean Ocean
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