Neu Curd Lake’s Magic

Who’d have thought that a mere 20 years after the fall of the Soviet Union, we’d have music like this, produced in some genius’ bedroom who just so happens to have grown up in mother Russia. That’s a harsh dismissal of Communist Russia’s lack of creativity. I’m sure it was brewing somewhere… However, long gone is the ageing Brezhnev Doctrine – here we’re treated to the youthful exuberance of Curd Lake’s Magic.

Of course, this first paragraph stems from the sole piece of information we know about the mysterious project, as is usually the case when writing about new music, fresh out the oven. The location on this electronic producer’s bandcamp might be all fun and games. Indeed, there’s an element of playfulness to the songs we’ve been exposed to in this short space of time: The first two minutes of ‘Mooon Beach’ crackle and splinter, never really settling into one cohesive flow. That’s up until a dominant, reverberating bassline enters and things get serious. Here is an artist that like many from the last 12 months, manages to mix five, six prevailing emotions into a short song, and they make it work.

It’s a blend of light, gentle tones and the more full-on bass levels that helps to define Curd Lake’s Magic. Vocals, though present, aren’t the focus. It’s more about the minimalism of ‘Young Rain in Long Hairs’ that makes it this vast, emotional number, bringing forth a whole range of feelings from the participating listener. ‘Mooon Beach’ is even more overwhelming, particularly when it evolves from this fidgety, irritated effort into a beautifully-produced-juggernaut.

Young Rain In Long Hairs (EP) by Curd Lake