jik cnidae Bytes Records | The Electro Review

jik
cnidae
Bytes Records
TBR: 26th June


A branch of the Ransom Note Records tree, Bytes are taking the mission to new levels and new angles of sunlight. jik is made up of two students from Warsaw in Poland. Paula and Bartek both add their personal vibe and techniques to create something unique and fulfilling. This debut record is set to show electronic music fans what this part of the world is capable of. As a part of Bytes history, this duo were the first musicians to send a demo to the label. It seems that the effort paid off as here they are on the sixth catalogue release.


The album opens with arp. Subtle shakers and tinnish taps radiate a smooth tempo while snaking synths gather from the corners and assemble in the centre. Sparkling lights twinkle in repeating phrases as various elements of tone and percussion ring out in spacial patterns. The music fades into a reverberation as new tempos are added to the fire. Pitches and drums inspired by the sounds of Warp Records dance in strange orbs that delicately decorate the sonic horizon.


A deep and emotive bass rhythm opens the next track. Childlike melodies play out alongside, with neat shaking bells and tappety cymbals that invigorate the flow. The graceful melodics of kumkwat progress in fuzzy illuminations which dance and circle strange pillars of playful intent. A hypnotic element is in the drum, it beats with far-reaching impetus and encourages a dreaming state of mind. Matched with the harmonisation and evolution of tune, the journey seems wonderful.


This is followed by organellum. Fizzing synth tones drape their sonic colour across large spaces of potential. The slow and breathy opening rises with gradual inclusions of new sound. Pad synthesisers dapple as saws slice the silence with manicured teeth. A relaxing vibration drifts through as gentle progress allows the mix to reveal new chapters and motivation as each movement takes shape. This huge fifteen minute lucid sleepwalk guides us towards new perspectives and sensations of being.


Haunting horn sounds are thrown across longitudinal vectors as a slow yet inviting metal rhythm builds like rising dough. A gradual and expertly crafted formulation reveals ever more pressing dimensions to this xanthan of sound. Whistles and radiances, brilliant and shrill, tilt and swing on axles that pivot on sensitive springs. Jedynka is a slow burner, the currents of loosely cut sound are spun on a revolving pivot of growing rhythmic intensity.


Another mammoth mix is laid down for the fifth number. It begins with swirly bass which crumbles and distorts across broken glass textures. Crumbled and disjointed sounds layer like biscuity whipped cream as generous amounts are piped and then spread around with graceful brushes of kinetic projection. Mind over matter brings this track into a presence of being a meditation and an invitation to the party at number one subconscious street. Wspomnienia is an epic story, full of shifting sands and juxtapositions of flow.


A scattering of pitches glisten and shine in dancing spots of point-point sound as the new number opens its pages. Twinkling lanterns bounce from gloopy ghosts which curl in opaque bass-lines. Then a prickly drum-fill adds a layering of percussion which rumbles and cracks areas of unknown dimension. A simple title of ibid reveals a subtle complexity and melancholia behind intelligent sculptures of progressive percussion and harmony.


Track seven is called przejscie and it opens with whistling tones that swirl briskly past a neat tapping drum. Winds lick the floor and walls as the sound of intention simmers through the evocative atmosphere in the room. Shakers and bells reveal dampened corners that wait for sunlight to brush away the shadows. Slow and seductive, the tones ripple in delicate yet mentally provocative shades of tempered feeling. Latent heat rises from the quivering pressures that are held within grains and lattices.


The final piece begins with static like blips and sonic spots that prickle and paint with splashes of regular spray. A siren like bass wheels in the background as a gradual gate infuses its sound with a dimension of twist. This is then grabbed and amplified to create a whole new formation in the sonic sky which flutters out of existence almost as fast as it was created. With a title like momenty zgrania i niezgranial, we can expect a fragmented and disparate number. This is what we get, as percussive glitches form knots and spongy bodies among the micro-gravity realm of planetary formation.


This unique and expertly blended album demonstrates what electronic music can do and how it can be used to interact with our most primal and evolved senses.


You can find cnidae by jik on Bandcamp


jik are on Soundcloud


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