A staple element of high-profile labels such as Hivern Discs and ESP Institute, Brussels-based producer Andrea Mancini alias Cleveland has built something of an impressive reputation over the last few years, establishing a sound signature both convincingly unique and daringly game-changing, as well as setting up a distinctly fresh musical grammar that invites the listener to see under the surface of the standstill techno/house dichotomy through more complex but just as effortlessly enjoyable architectonics.
Complete with a choice duo of remixes courtesy of Beta Librae and Piezo, Cleveland’s debut EP for Kalahari Oyster Cult sits straight in line with the recreated organic lushness and widescreen vista of his previous installments. Seemingly a straightforward broken-beat affair at first glance, ‘Gamma’ seamlessly slides towards sun-dazed weirdo house terrains with its dripping honey-like melange of dubbed-out synth ripples, distorted machine talk, and foot-shuffling drum work.
A further Arpanet-friendly slab of shapeless electronics, ‘Ora’ levitates in a zone of its own, subtly oscillating betwixt chimey oneirism and crystal-like, arpeggiated brittleness. On the flip, ‘Gamma’ gets a double treat. Turning the track into a proper floor-ready weapon, Pezio alternates sequences of hypnotic melodic shimmer with a stealthily squelchy but dynamic percussive momentum. Adding her trademark playful get-up-and-go whilst retaining the original’s textural quirk, Brooklyn’s Beta Librae explores even further the cheeky vibrancy of Cleveland’s non-formulaic audio semantics to brush a vividly trippy tableau of sorts.
