Lowfour: Stenmark
Kupei Musika

With his Cliphop (Raster-Noton) and Ljud (Mille Plateaux) albums, Swedish producer Andreas Tilliander (aka Mokira, Rechord, and Lowfour) established himself as one of the prime movers in the clicks'n'cuts and click-house movements. Yet while material produced within those genres sometimes suffered from sounding too static, the four tracks on Stenmark are refreshingly propulsive. The 12-inch pairs two Lowfour originals (both named after ‘70s skiers) with two remixes of the title track by Hässleholm natives Andreas Hörlén (Future/Past Productions) and Stefan Thor (Folie).

Though click-house textures are clearly evident in the “Stenmark” original, the primary focus is groove, specifically a pile-driving shuffle stomp Tilliander kickstarts with jittery electro hiccups throughout. In his 'Tomii Kiosk' remix,' Thor takes the track on a funkier tech-house jaunt while Hörlén stokes a magnificent retro-electro-house broil in his wonderful overhaul. More minimal by comparison, Tilliander strips “Wassberg” to an electro groove core that determinedly burbles and pounds. If Stenmark offers ample evidence of Tilliander's texturally layered style, it's still infectious club-oriented material above all else.

December 2005