Sofus Forsberg: FM Volta (Mindwaves Music)
Sofus Forsberg's FM Volta may be only 6 cuts long, but it packs some heft. While an act like Akkord has taken some of the angular, technical mechanics of Autechre and applied them to dance music and minimal techno sounds, Forsberg's glitchy sprawls feel like a sort of amalgamation of old and new sounds of post-Autechre IDM (if that ain't a mouthful!). This may sound like a knock, but it's actually a high compliment; I find these tracks to brim with enthusiasm for sound in a way not unlike much of Autechre's post-2000 output, and yet there is more traditional musicality to lend it a rather different flavor, moodwise harking back to the more melodic sounds of nascent IDM in the mid to late 90s, all good things in my opinion.
FM Volta by Sofus Forsberg
Nicely, though, it's not just emulation. Forsberg has a sensibility that makes itself clearer as FM Volta unfolds, whether on the abstract, fidgety electro of “Take Fibrillo” or on the slipperier groove of “Chineese Swamp,” there is a quiet confidence in this music. It's accomplished as purely sound design, but still manages to wriggle its way into the ear by virtue of its subtle grooves. Fans of some of the glitchier IDM of yore that's circulated via esteemed labels like Neo Ouija, Toytronic, Warp, or Schematic, to name a few, will most likely find FM Volta to infuse its reference points with Forsberg's own personal touch and production that feels very much current. Highly recommended.
Buy it: Bandcamp | iTunes
