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Jirku/Judge, "Private Eyes"
Thanks in no small regard to the efforts of high profile DJs like Richie Hawtin, whose DE9mix CDs in particular have served as accessible benchmarks for thesubgenre, minimal techno and its incestuous electronic variantscontinue to enjoy the freedoms of expression and progression whilemaintaining an audience. While some of the producers previouslycomposing this sound have moved on to radically different terrain (see:Rhythm & Sound), several artists like Donnacha Costello, VladislavDelay, and Tomas Jirku have stayed the course while pushing boundaries.Here, the latter gent pairs up with Robin Judge, another Mille Plateauxrefugee and Traum cohort, for a loosely thematic album that looks both wayswhile crossing the street, reverently in the direction of the past andthoughtfully towards the future.
The respective and respectable back catalogs of Jirku and Judgedemonstrate a history of experimentation in sound design and anunderstanding of the dancefloor, and the tracks presented here clearlyrepresents their combined craftsmanship. "Double Trouble" splicescrude, almost ancient-sounding melodic bleeps over requisite clickypercussion resulting in an ascetic take on jacking house. The bassystabs and metallic breaksy snares summon the spirit of the old-schoolon "Counter Measures," a post-rave anthem if ever there was one.Minimal techno DJs everywhere should have at the ready when rocking thefloor with CD decks or Final Scratch as, much to my surprise, thisbreakout track is apparently unavailable on vinyl. (For thatdemographic, however, Onitor released a companion 12" with unreleasedmaterial, presumably from the same sessions.) Fans of deeper soundswill enjoy the synth washes of late period Drexciyan "Exposed" and thealmost somber tones of "Internal Affairs."
Not every track stands out as brightly the aforementioned cuts, butgenerally that is to be expected from "artist albums" in a genre stilldominated by a singles culture. While Jirku has yet to top theunderrated Sequins, his minimal disco funk odyssey for Force-Inc., Private Eyeshas plenty of tasty grooves to offer anyone who abandoned the subgenreafter music journalists stopped using the word "glitch" to define it.
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