Arandel: In D Remixed
InFiné

InFiné often uses a roster artist's full-length as a springboard for remixes, and Arandel's 2010 In D Remixed has proven to be no different in that regard. Last fall witnessed the first evidence of that in Arandel's case when the EPs In D#5 and In D#3 appeared, and now a full album's worth of remixes is upon us. In keeping with the experimental character of the originating project (Arandel eschewed midi-equipment and samplers in composing and recording the album's material), some of the remixes are less club-based in spirit and more like abstract electronica treatments, with the remixers toiling as feverishly in their respective labs as Arandel did in his. One of the most interesting aspects of the recording is witnessing how a given track gets twisted into such radically contrasting shapes at the hands of different producers. Fraction allows a hyperactive beat pattern to animate “In D#5,” but it's merely one element within a mix that includes choral voices and pulsating electronic textures. In recasting “In D#5” as an ethereal setting of anguished choral voices, the nightmarish Solfeggio version, on the other hand, calls to mind György Ligeti's “Lux Aeterna.”

Whereas Rone opts for a blazing IDM take in his “In D#3” version, Bruno Pronsato plunges down an entirely other rabbit hole for his, preferring instead to take the track on a thirteen-minute tour through seemingly every possible corner of an after-hours club. Pronsato's slinky, bass-burbling mix oozes a loose and meandering vibe that, in concert with its generous length, gives it a shapeless quality that's not as unsatisfying as might be suggested by that description. An effective club treatment in its own right, Michael Forzza's “In D#5” includes so many eccentric sounds one could imagine it appearing on Microcosm or foundsound, labels specializing in sample-based dance music, and Sinner DC likewise achieves a seamless integration of classical strings and insistent dance rhythms in its “In D#3” makeover. The pick of the litter, however, is the multi-dimensional club treatment given “In D#7” by one Mr Raoul K. Suggestive of a train engine revving up, harmonica-like huffs and puffs appear at the beginning before the locomotive groove kicks in to send the piece on its ten-minute journey. There's a tribal quality to the piece in the Portable-styled incorporation of African percussion, as well as a rave feel in its euphoric reach, and even a classical dimension its its soaring violins. As if all that's not enough, a spacey quality emerges in the presence of warbling electronics.

August 2011