10-20 – Island [Highpoint Lowlife]

As part of the Landforms EP series 10-20 drops the first of the four instalments ‘Island’ on us and there is no let up in quality at all after his excellent self-titled album earlier in the year, which is still on heavy rotation from me. Island takes things down a slightly smoother route, and this might be the beautiful weather talking but there seems to be a woozy sunshine vibe going on here. You can hear tropical streams and shimmering pads of sound played off against the glitch riddled beats and electronics until they all melt together.

The opener ‘Pol’ sounds like a waterfall and stream fed through electronic sound, the way the glitches and pads flow and take over are so hypnotic, then the track switches up into an off-kilter electro jam before melting back into the calm. It’s a brilliant start and maybe the stand out track here for me.

The more beat driven ‘Hallow’ takes over next with a subtle shuffle and electronic surf washes up on the side of a shore before beautiful looped pads make you fall into a blissful state. These first two tracks show the hazy side of 10-20 that’s for sure.

Things get a little more industrial on ‘Nei (reversion)’ it has a crunch and wurr like distant machinery but with an underlying softness that gives the track a unique atmosphere. The phrase I used for the s/t album still rings true here, it’s like flowing down a river and past a working industrial estate you can hear the working urban environment rubbing against natural elements.

The finale comes in the shape of the dreamy ‘Thing From Inner Space’ there is a hypnotic feeling here like the night is drawing in and the muggy heat of day is dispersing into a gentle cool. It drones and crackles and finishes off the EP really well.

10-20’s Island EP is a wonderful listen and a great start to the Landforms series, which is sounding very good indeed and explores many sounds from the sublime and ghostly to neon and beyond.

Download: Future Sounds Of Highpoint Lowlife Mixtape

Download: 10-20 – Landforms Mix

http://highpointlowlife.com/?p=814

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