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SLANT-DATA-005

UNKNOWN WANDERER

COUNCIL TAX EP

SLANT-DATA-005

01 Troll Bridge 6:49 LISTEN
02 Troll Bridge (Area Dub) 6:31 LISTEN
03 Council Tax 6:31 LISTEN
04 Council Tax (bvdub's Sunset Over Haze Theater Mix) 14:48 LISTEN

Download at Beatport

THE UNKNOWN WANDERER FINDS A PATH IN DUB TECHNO

Michael Boland made his first appearance as an artist in the electronic music world as Unknown Wanderer in 2007 on Soma Quality Recordings sublabel, Pnuma.  However, he's been at it awhile.  Having been a hobbyist producer and DJ ahead of taking to the virtual airwaves of Radio Magnetic, the Glaswegian wanderer living in Essex has made a quest of creating a distinct sound all his own.  The Unknown Wanderer's "Phobia EP" on Alex Smoke and Jim Hutchinson's label, Hum and Haw, yielded three unique, stunning pieces of dub influenced techno, giving evidence that the Unknown Wanderer had found his way.  He continues along this path with the "Council Tax EP".

This release is a bit of a departure from the dancefloor for Slant. The opener, "Troll Bridge" is a prime example of the Unknown Wanderer's sound.  Deep and mysterious, its cold, mechanical beats zap along beneath a river of sinuous synth.  Dub techno fans will find themselves in somewhat familiar territory while receiving an introduction to Boland's one-of-a-kind style.

Taking on the first piece is the prolific master remixer Area.  A staple DJ in Chicago also known as M50, Area preceded his recent solo releases on Echospace and Francois Kevorkian's Wave label with an impressive list of remixes of everyone from Soultek to Steve Poindexter.  His skills in the art of dub shine brightly in his enveloping, hypnotic take on "Troll Bridge".  Beads of chord trickle and scramble as heavy sub swells slowly between low and ultralow frequencies.

The title track "Council Tax" pits short, icy clangs against a deluge of synth and delay.  It's a dive into a distant, futuristic setting where the essence of classic dub lives, but has been warped to new levels.

The release closes with a stunning version from Echospace artist and Quietus label head bvdub.  Brock Van Wey's take on "Council Tax" works magic in making its nearly fifteen minutes fly by in a flash.  It's book-ended by the ambient maestro's gorgeous atmospherics, each side connected by scattered, lo-fi beats that scratch together just enough semblance of tempo to maybe call it techno of some sort.  It is nothing short of epic.

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