- SW and SVN have been appearing on the same records for years, but they've only collaborated once since they launched their SUED label in 2011. That collaboration resulted in some unusually straightforward tunes. Their latest team-up, this time on Apollo Records (which reissued SW's landmark album last year), emphasizes a different side of the duo through foggy atmospheres and downtempo diversions.
Perhaps naturally for an appearance on Apollo, R&S's more ambient sub-label, the two producers focus on their softer sides. The worn-out analogue textures and skippy drums on "dx n-lip" could be from a track Apollo put out in the '90s. "tr.rd." is slower, moving through a twilit soundscape at a snail's pace. Sketches like "11-10-17.1" recall the majesty of that SW. album. Thanks to its corroded basslines and surprisingly punchy drums, "tx 77 hinten" isn't as ambient. The drum pattern disintegrates, ending as a blur of filtered percussion and bass. On "la-400x" a breakbeat and an upbeat melody perk up your ears, turning melancholy with a magical pivot at the end. AMB1805 isn't this duo's most essential record, but it has plenty of strange, goosebump-inducing moments, which, on a bigger label like Apollo, could draw even more people to SUED's wonderful world.
TracklistA1 10-10- nomix
A2 dx n-lip
A3 11-10-17.1
B1 la-400x
B2 tx 77 hinten
B3 tr.rd.