Amidst a flutter of music that arrives at Harmonious Discordheadquarters an abstractly focused artist came onto their radar with a keen sensibility for subversiveness and that off-center quality that has become the trademark of the label. Thus Harmonious Discord presents the Mexican-born and New York City raised Ivan Dbri and his premiere project the Archaic EP. With previous releases on Cueplay, Proton, and Lohit as well as many projects with frequent production partner Wirik, Dbri is a rising talent in the electronic dance scene. This EP showcases a wide range of emotive experiments in house music sounds ranging from a dub-evolver like “Archaic” to a monstrous club rumbler like “Solitudine.” Dbri’s tracks all carry the concurrent theme of a dub-washed post-apocalyptic sunrise. Complimenting a superb set of original offerings are remixes from HD artists Patchen Preston andHenry Chow who take Ivan’s title track and amp up the energy level with a set of dance-conscious reworks.
Our journey begins with melodic droplets doused in reverb and set in motion. “Archaic” is the slow, deliberate story of creation. Meaningful apexes and diversions wash over the soundscape while the overall repetition builds in intensity. Peppered with sizzling atmospheric orbiting confusion, we build to a steady syncopated rhythm that penetrates the outer membranes and vibrates the core. Harmonious Discord co-founder Patchen Preston delivers an up-beat re-work following the bass-heavy nature of the original with some hip-prompting house percussion. Filled with motion, this revisit quickly begins its full force journey with reverbed pad stabs and tongue-in-cheek vocal sprinklings. The infectious bass is impossible to ignore as occasional pitch bends infuse a funk into this late night adventure. Hot off the tail of a killer contribution to last year’s Discordian Dreaming sampler is Texas native Henry Chow. Henry takes the highly cerebral original and puts it into his context, producing an off-center house creation perfect for introducing some evil elements into a DJ’s sets. Dissonant vibe stabs and Linn-drum percussion accents give this remix a nod to the old while forged in the future sound of house. “Balearic Playa Del Carmen" changes gears with a highly contemplative and organic deep techno piece that utilizes skin-crawling acoustic samples to create a feeling of desolation like a word lost under a whisper. It is hard to not instantly feel the warmth created by the calming sounds and get lost in a daydream of wicked fantasies. "Solitudine" rounds out our experience with a creepy, German-inspired techno tool. "Solitudine" fuses minimal music with a horizon of melody that hovers over the listener until unleashed in a moment of pure energy. It is these simple ideas that somehow penetrate and grow giving Ivan’s music a symbiotic quality and sets the stage for him to quickly become a back-pocket name for listeners that search beyond the dancefloor.
TJ Norris (Resident Advisor) - “Very smooth and sultry. A sound that just hints at taunting of the late night chill hour. It bubbles and flows with an incredibly stealth steady percussive rhythm.”
Aubrey (Solid Groove, Textures) - “Great EP, all over. Underground and cool sound.”
Deepchild (Trapez) - “Excellent dubby, compelling techno.”
President Bongo (GusGus) - “Really nice dubby release .. I’m into the ‘Archaic’ track.”
Available now from Beatport