Available from his bandcamp.
01. Yarn Ball 5:02
02. Puma-pard 5:40
03. Sofa Clan 3:04
04. Purr Purr 5:30
05. Grey Mlkn 5:59
06. Ndro-phix 6:08
07. Hail Bast 7:02
Yarn Ball:
Very very modern sound. James Blake and other producers of the more melodically driven dubstep spring to mind. The swirling synths, swooping chords and off-beat drums all working in perfect harmony. I am a huge fan of this track. I love the way it kind of drags itself along with the snare acting almost as a whip to the lethargic, throbbing synths in places. Other stand out elements include the trilling synths which remind me of cicadas on a hot summer day out here on Japan. All in all, a very complex, beautifully constructed track.
Puma-pard:
Starts off ominously with synths fading in and out. We are then exposed to a melody that is seemingly rudely cut off, not being allowed to finish. It foes fight back though, and boy are we rewarded with a beautiful, uplifting melody that really lifts the track. The rising synths are also a pleasing element here, giving the track some good dynamics. The second half of the track shows strong dub influences in the bass synth and drums before the finale, leaving us on a high.
Sofa Clan:
This is full of swing from the get-go. A fast-paced track that does not let up. I imagine this track being used in a gun-fight or car-chase scene of a movie set in the time of prohibition. Think Bugsy Malone and then some.
Purr Purr:
Again, reviewing each track as the image I see upon listening, this track seems full of scorn and anger, there is also an element of searching. As if a hero/prince is found lost in a city of creepy back alleys, trying desperately to find his one true love. Maybe this track was inspired by a stray cat, forced out of it’s home to fed for itself in a world unknown. Either way, the track is filled with the most delectable purring synths and accompanying arps. There has also been a large consideration paid to the drum programming in this track, as it pretty fast paced.
Grey Mlkn:
A very rhythmically-driven track, with darker dub elements. Track progression through the whole album is excellent; however, this track pays particular attention to such concepts. The track taking on many forms over it’s duration, some light some dark, some pitch black.
Ndro-phix:
We are created by several different purring cats at the start of this track before lightening-esque percussion and arpeggiated synths come in and start the tour of the grand mansion that appears before us. A track filled with majesty and brilliance. I really appreciate the well constructed arpeggiated synths and accompanying synths that twinkle along as our guide. Another bolt of lighting tears the track in two and the track takes a turn towards darker pastures. The purring cats always in tow! Maybe we have reached an adjoining graveyard to the mansion or the deep dungeons buried in secrecy below. The darkness doesn’t last too long though as we once again are led to lighter areas by the main synth. The fast-paced drums that are introduced just before the track finishes are well devised, i think they would have been a welcome sonic element earlier in the track.
Hail Bast:
This is the final track of this wonderful release and we are left with a tearful, emotion-ridden goodbye. I am a particular fan of the glitchy, broken-beat percussion in this last track.
INTERVIEW
I emailed some questions to ZZZV regarding how he went about producing the album and this is what he had to say:
Firstly everything was made in FamiTracker, written for the basic NES
soundchip with no expansion - so although it can be played back on a
single NES I actually wrote it on a PC. when I make tracks I start by
jamming on a keyboard until I find a theme worth making a song out of
and then rehearse the hell out of it, finally sitting down to track it
once I have played it enough to understand how it can be changed well
- and during tracking all my songs change, growing solo sections or
else losing repetitions I realise are redundant. As for production I
tend to present the song as it sounds raw, minus a little subtle
panning and reverb - I don’t spend hours worrying about the mix which
is probably obvious, haha.
And regarding his inspirations:
N0de claw doesn’t necessarily sound like the music I spend time
listening to - I divide a lot of my music time between progressive
rock, 70s/80s avantgarde and industrial and simple
chanson-ish/cabaret-ish sounding songs, with the remainder spent
listening to individual bands who have frankly annoying quirks, like
Melvins, Boredoms etc. I got into doing chiptune music because of
nostalgia, quite honestly, remembering the music from Solstice (by Tim
Follin) and Bomberman (by Jun Chikuma) along with a great many Amiga
soundtracks I found inspiring without at the time having the facility
to do anything with that inspiration, but nowadays I’m just as
impressed by Kulor, Blitz Lunar, Rico Zerone and any of the names
you’re likely to see on a Ubik or Pause chip release. I’m not a fan of
music made for live listening, I prefer songs aimed at one set of ears
at a time.
This in my opinion is a really excellent release and should not be missed. Again, available from ZZZV’s bandcamp.
