SND - Atavism

SND - ATAVISM (RASTER-NOTON)

The choice of title for SND’s first LP since 2002’s “Tenderlove” is apt, as Mark Fell and Mat Steel revert to the most minimal of set-ups and canvas for their first release on Chemnitz’s increasingly revered Raster-Noton label. Whilst I’m aware that comparing acts is often the first sign of lazy journalism, I witnessed SND perform alongside Autechre at the now legendary Hearn Street car park gig in 2008, and it was hard to get away from the fact that their sparse approach to sound was utterly overwhelmed by the dense labyrinth of electronics that followed them. As such, this new release is a pleasant surprise, as SND’s careful and somewhat stoic approach to their music is always worth the listener’s consideration.

“Atavism” is a series of untitled 16 tracks that see Fell and Steel go back to basics, with simplistic rhythm tracks propping up minimal sounds, raw techno stripped to its very core. In a way it’s as if Force Inc and glitch never happened, as there’s very little in the way of interference here, as if they’re trying to emulate the icy grandeur of Mika Vainio at his peak, but with a raw jam-like approach. This is analogue hypnotism, but it’s constructed with care, and by track 7 I found myself locked into their small world of scattered beats and washes of sound that coalesce beautifully 2 passages later, where both strands of rhythm and sound merge together into a recognisable form, and from then on the album gracefully lifts itself into the stratosphere. The beats become more jittery, echoing the aforementioned Autechre, but still restrained, whilst small dashes of untreated synth try to find a place to breathe. The album climaxes with the crushing minimalism of the 9 minute track 13.

What’s most apparent about this album is Fell and Steel’s ability to harness arguably just 3 or 4 simple sounds, and generate expansive ideas with them. It’s linear, but within that basic framework, they’ve found a way to re-express original techno ideas; witness the stabbing repetition of track 7 that reminds one of prime era Robert Hood. “Atavism” takes the original heritage of techno’s golden period, and reprises it for a new audience.

Toby Frith