- A beautiful exploration of IDM, prog and drum & bass from a true master of synths.
- When Nadia Struiwigh debuted on CPU Records in 2017, she appeared to arrive fully formed. A hardware wizard by anyone's measure, what was immediately clear was that she wasn't only a master of gear, but of songwriting, too—or at least what you could call songwriting when it comes to techno, IDM and '90s-style electronica. She's already established herself as an album artist, and her fourth LP, which lands on Dekmantel, is her best yet. It slowly comes to life in a swirl of kosmische before traversing through Amber-era Autechre and finishing off with a bit of drum & bass, a gradual narrative arc that moves confidently, beautifully and a little mysteriously.
Birds Of Paradise begins with a hint of the sci-fi. Swirling synths and blankets of rich analogue texture bring to mind spooky film intros and outer space vistas. Melodies tangle and loop on the evocative "JSF48," whose gentle propulsion and bright, early morning sun atmosphere sound like if Klaus Schulze took over Popol Vuh. As the LP progresses, rhythms start to form as drums take shape, like silt at the bottom of the riverbed getting picked up by the current. The percussion on "02nd" is especially crunchy, almost like beatboxing, the rougher surface providing something to hold onto amid the silky chiffon around it.
From there, Birds Of Paradise starts to smoulder. The stunning "End Of The Tunnel" sounds like where Warp's Artificial Intelligence series meets dBridge and Instra:mental's Autonomic drum & bass. This is where Struiwigh's music decouples from the IDM pastiche it can sometimes feel like, hurtling towards a climax with the lovely title track. "Birds Of Paradise" poses a bold new form for liquid drum & bass, Reese basslines and bold, lava lamp-style '90s textures replacing the usual signifiers of tinkling piano and strings. In between, there's prog house touches ("Dreamsynth204") and old-school electro complete with vocoder hooks ("Parcel 33" and the wonderfully titled "Yes, Beavers"). These are Struiwigh's nod to modern dance floors. But with "Birds Of Paradise" and the yawning, mostly beatless stretch that leads up to it, she's created a whole new way to look at classic IDM and its many offspring, establishing a signature sound whose trademark is its diversity and finesse.
Tracklist01. Shadow On The Left
02. Rainbrain
03. JSF48
04. hLOw
05. 02nd
06. Grown Trancy
07. Endofthe Tunnel
08. cmmn cmmn
09. Dreamsynth204
10. Parcel 33
11. Yep, Beavers?
12. Birds Of Paradise