Taking over Ibiza’s ‘Pacha’ club, the Berlin-based wunderkind — Dixon — conducted a foolproof ‘experiment’ to tackle fluttering attention spans and ground them into a melodic deep techno vibe. With compounded euphemisms and resolute press releases, Dixon delivered avant- garde artists that were able to emanate the ‘Transmoderna’ ethos by magnetically reeling in crowds, despite external hustle and bustle. Dixon’s code of musical marvels, enlisted from all corners of the sphere, fueled excitement when kicking off the weekend’s pregame (or endgame) over Ibiza’s 20-week season. ‘Transmoderna’s focus on the atmosphere was a vital facet to the holistic experience of the event. Soft smoke and refracting screen projections illuminated platforms while atop party pumpers executed robotic choreography. State-of-the-art lasers were undeniably Dixon-verified; but, once they mirrored off dangling art installations, the ‘Transmoderna’ pulse transmuted into a lucid ‘hyperreality’. The team used forefront technologies, resonating or not, that drew a thematic thread similar to ‘Lost in a Moment’s present awareness and acute attentiveness. Instead, this time ‘Transmoderna’ used ‘fracture, frission, and funthasma’ to guide the direction of modern minds beyond and throughout the confines of a bountiful immersion. The four-track EP releases the highlighted tracks orchestrated by honored guests at ‘Transmoderna’ and relays the surreality of this island operation.
The collaboration of Âme and Mathew Jonson calibrates the perfect dosage of accentual zings and rings around the modern-day melodic house. Proving as some of the best alliances, you’re obliged to secure a spot on the dance-floor with (any mix and match of) these artists. That is, when you can. Starting the EP strong, the shelly clicks seamlessly magnetize to stuttering synths and immediately finesse an underground vibration. Circling down a bottomless drain, the soothing backup vocals coax a nostalgic knock while wailing auto-tunes synthesize an AI hypnosis. The prolonged breakdown accumulates progressive and reflective sounds; picking up each other’s lag helps comp the — ever-dissipative — connection between the two. Writ with melancholia, the melody deviates from what was, without struggle, paying homage and moving forward. However, the signal sounds caution while boarding on digital tribalism’s bandwagon (eligibly or allegedly) reflecting that you may be an upgrade away from becoming an unidentifiable smoke machine. Careful to not abduct with too much resistance or retention, the track expedites present tranquility.
The Echonomist releases his debut release on Innervisions via powerful electricities and harmonic electicies. He appeared at Pacha on June 21st alongside Trikk and Dixon. ‘Back to Mine’ has infiltrated countless sets, marking as the perfect track to score an enthusiastic welcome. ‘Back to Mine’ dreamily soars into an implicit battle between space and time’s animosity. Strutting a seismic hostility, the gurgling pads prompt a tactile feel to the static frequency’s ascension, not (yet) touching one another. The downtempo’s perseverance trudges up a spiraling staircase, preparing the track’s vessel to be — ever-so smoothly — contracted into a no-man’s land. As the elements inch closer to mid-track, the fussing dimensions fold into one another. After the track’s gravity engulfs itself, the Echonomist spits out an atomic fist as the bassline procedes to ruthlessly smear warpaint across desolate cheekbones. The ‘Back to Mine’ universe timelessly teases a collapsing fissure amongst an epileptic settlement.
A consort of Innervisions, Trikk, spirits a soul-ticking ethnology, thus his charisma naturally trickles into the ‘Transmoderna’ philosophy. The emotionally-riveting track relays a heroic account, that of which is: classical, cinematic, and nothing short of dramatic. Eliciting an invigorating rhythm, the drum kick’s breath cycle mediates: inhaling persistence and exhaling internal conflict. Trikk melody tips over an orange flame, thereby igniting thunderous synths and marking the time to finally flee. Scurrying to the edge of a fire escape, flickering eyes catch a glimpse of the thick fumes invading the space once called home. As the track climbs down the latter, angelic pads steer faith, meanwhile abduction signals resonate hastiness. Anecdotal recollections weave an intricate blanket of cultural patterns, yet, only those pulled are marked relevant. Wondering when or if it’s safe to return, the boomerang ending remarks a peaceful and reflective correspondence.
Roman Flügel recoils into another Innervisions release alongside Frank Wiedemann with an opaque shadow of eccentricity. Building a peak time track, the EP drops a little deeper into the dark abyss of Frank and Roman’s murky layer of fluidity. Diving deeper underwater increases the track’s hydrostaticity, thus inviting oscillating creatures to loiter around sedimented frustrations and buried desires. The surface pressure withholds agitation, but the plucked chords reverberate the pack of chirping sounds into a torrid charge. Overlying the ticking baseline’s tremble, arpeggiated keys digress into a melody of entrancing momentum. After the depth has been exploited, the elemental mixture increases motion and respectively the pressure lessens, almost as if it were by law. Abrasively the door is slammed once again, this time in the face of reductive and self-pitiful expressions.
Lending the global clubbing community a breakthrough, Dixon’s residency at Pacha has proven the ‘Transmoderna’ hypothesis within the field of underground electronic music. Under proper conditions, and careful control of Innervisions scientists, the party’s balance of a (stem)ulating atmosphere and uncanny musical output manifests the method’s future reproducibly. Amidst all the ‘cyberenthusiasm’ of ‘Transmoderna’, Dixon and his cohorts habitually looped subdural chills throughout (advantageous) Friday nights in Ibiza. The four-track EP sums up the event’s undeniable attraction and shines a natural light on ‘Transmoderna’ and the talents who successfully obliged to its code. ‘Transmoderna’ and Innervisions help restructure the pieces within electronic music by matching a space that compliments the label’s ever-evolving fidelity.
‘Transmoderna EP’ was released on Innervisions on September 20th, 2019.
Review by Isabella Gadinis
Torture the Artist 