- Vulnerable yet powerful IDM-influenced dance music.
- I have a soft spot for RamonPang. Both of us are first-generation Filipino-Americans who came up in the EDM trap scene, but have since transitioned to the underground electronic music side. Having followed Ramon's career for half a decade makes unpacking his newest album all the more satisfying. Most people know RamonPang from his meme-y trap alias plurgatti boy 420, or because Four Tet played one of his edits in the middle of Times Square. As a trap-loving Four Tet superfan, he's fine with either, which also makes complete sense when you listen to his latest full-length. Over ten cuts of glitchy, 808-heavy IDM, Life Cycle Waves presents all sides of RamonPang—and you can love it or leave it.
Life Cycle Waves is RamonPang's third album, keeping with the organic themes established in his 2021 debut Nature System and its 2022 follow-up, Third Places. This time, he focuses on the sea, relating its ups and downs to his own life.
Ramon is just entering his late 20s, and he's navigating being a full-time musician for the first time, getting over heartbreak and the hard work of self-growth. It's not easy being vulnerable, but he leaves everything on the table here. The record is a diaristic expression of Ramon's experience, a sonic blueprint meant to guide listeners through their own journey of self-realisation.
When I was younger and wanted to escape family drama, I'd jump in the pool, swim to the very bottom and sit for as long as I could hold my breath to muffle the screams. "Held And Wanting To Be Held" feels like that because it almost sounds like you're listening to the song from underwater. A siren-like voice tempts you to go deeper. A clock ticks throughout, only adding more and more pressure as time goes on. With one minute left, bubbling synths push you back to the surface, leaving you with whirling blares that don't make it easy to catch your breath. It's a downtempo tune that could fit perfectly on Ivy Lab's 2019 Stars EP, which is probably why it's one of my favourites.
Songs like "A Vast Expanse" and "Waves Crashing" are intense in different ways, and they showcase a darker, maximalist side. "A Vast Expanse" feels like an action-adventure. Atmospheric handpan drums and chopped harps build suspense, only to give way to unexpected laser-like synths that take over. It's as if a Star Wars lightsaber battle was happening in the middle of an IDM track. "Waves Crashing," on the other hand, feels like a manic episode scored by Jimmy Edgar. It's one of the shortest songs in the album, but it's also one of the most commanding. Featuring a more formulaic bass beat, its thumping drums and hooting loops seem never-ending. On its own, it might seem like too much, but after five abstract songs "Waves Crashing" gives just the wake-up call we need to get back on track.
"Smooth" and "Daze" are the other standouts. The combination of the tender saxophone over the delicate harp plucks in "Smooth" is grounding, especially after the crazed "Waves Crashing" and "Be With Me" that precedes it. "Daze" cleverly pays homage to RamonPang's trap roots by contrasting gossamer vocals with tough 808s that feel like they belong in a TNGHT track. RamonPang has never been one to shy away from showing people who he is, but Life Cycle Waves might be his most personal work yet. Living in both the commercialized EDM space and making music for the headier underground scene is probably identity crisis-inducing, but the producer graciously navigates the two worlds by staying true to himself and proves that not boxing yourself in can make for the most interesting music.
Tracklist01. Run Algae
02. Daze
03. A Vast Expanse
04. Held And Wanting To Be Held
05. Nothing To Figure Out
06. Waves Crashing
07. Be With Me
08. Smooth
09. Third Freeze
10. We Smiled Together