Only three months, and we’ve got the EP to accompany Oversteps. Thank goodness Bleep is doing American distribution. With the dollar the way it is, this would have been about $623.95 if I’d ordered it from England.
No record is worth that much unless it has Tiny Tim. We’ve got a recession going here, and we have to hitch a ride with the Russians just to get into orbit these days. I mean, really. One has to have priorities.
But, is it worth ten bucks? Definitely.
First things first. Some records are meant to be heard through headphones. This is not one of those records. It’s meant to be heard across the room with great speakers, and some air between the equipment and the listener. There’s something about the mix that feels a bit claustrophobic through headphones, but it blossoms in open air.
Move of Ten is to Oversteps what Envane and Cichlisuite were to Chiastic Slide: a remix record, but in only the most abstract of terms. While Oversteps was introverted and subtle, things here are looser and more casual. There’s a definite nod in spots to their roots in acid, with some melodies recalling Richie Hawtin and a certain resemblance to Basic Channel in the overall atmosphere.
“Etchogon-S” sounds like it would have fit in well on Untilted, but rather than dwelling on rhythmic abstraction, it lets the sputtering percussion track take a back seat to a disjointed but jaunty melody. “y7” wouldn’t have been out of place in the Class of 1995, except for the fact that the 808 has been replaced by modern software, and the track never quite settles into rote repetition.
“rew(1)” is an ode to electro funk, and while it feels like a Draft 7.30 outtake, it’s got more of a sense of humor. “nth Dafusederb” is an airy, less mischievous take on “d-sho qub,” and the hazy melody does seem to recall classic Boards of Canada. Whether that’s how it was meant, or that’s just how I’m hearing it, I’m not sure. It’s enjoyable nonetheless.
“iris was a pupil” is a more disciplined take on the miasma of “pt2ph8,” while “no border” and “ylm0” draw from “redfall” and “Treale.”
“M62” is one of the most conventional things they’ve done in quite some time. It sounds a bit like Richard James’ Analord work from five years back: 4/4 bass drum, bubbling acid line, lazy harmonics. There doesn’t seem to be any structural trick or ulterior motive; in fact, there’s nothing challenging about it at all. I don’t find myself minding that in the least for some reason.
The record closes with “Cep puiqMX,” a track reminiscent of Chris Clark’s recent work. It’s messy and violent without being off-putting. It builds upon a fragmented 6/8 beat, which builds and nearly collapses under its own weight.
Even though it clocks in at 47 minutes, this still qualifies as an EP and not an album proper when it comes to review criteria. In some cases, their EP’s have stood as unique records in their own right, as with EP7 and Garbage. In other instances, they’ve been straightforward remix projects, such as with Quadrange.
Move of Ten falls closer to the Quadrange side of the coin, but not so slavishly that it doesn’t have its own identity. It’s a bit scattershot, but even at their most casual, they’re doing this stuff better than anyone out there.