Primal Forms

Written and produced by Sam Shackleton and Waclaw Zimpel. Electronics, sequencing, and programming by Sam Shackleton. Alto clarinet, violin, harmonium, e-piano, organ, frame drum, percussions, lira, and monochord by Waclaw Zimpel, If Shackleton made Klezmer...

Watching Shackleton's music morph from dislocated bass experimentation into psychedelic electro-jazz fusion has been a joy. This latest is his most cosmic set to date, following last year's heady Tunes Of Negation LP "Reach The Endless Sea" with an undulating trio of organic/electronic collaborations with Polish clarinet virtuoso and multi-instrumentalist Wacław Zimpel. "Primal Forms" follows its own beat, with two artists reacting to each others instincts and areas of expertise, following ideas to their mindbending conclusion in a haze of repetition, rhythm and synapse-popping fizzy ASMR lushness.

At this stage, the skeleton of dubstep has been almost completely burned away, but Shackleton's well-honed engineering expertise still plays a part. Subs rattle expertly beneath Zimpel's flurrying notes and Shackleton's pineal-tickling drum circles. It's almost ritualistic at times, sounding like an ancient incantation rebuilt by AI-assisted cyber beings on a distant planet. Ingest whichever mind-splitting substance is most preferred, dive in and watch the colors.