ARTIST(S): Architectural
TITLE: Cubismo
LABEL: Architectural Records
CAT n°: ARCH008
FORMAT: 12”// Digital download
RELEASE DATE: December 9th 2016
Architectural – the name of both the record label and the producer – has returned with an eighth installment of raw, minimalist techno. This release arrives on the heels Amour, Architectural’s most recent album that appeared with critical acclaim on Wolfskuil Records in 2015. Juan Rico’s sound on Cubismo draws heavily from Detroit industrialism and Chicago soul, the sonic influences of which can be heard throughout this most recent release. Following the dark, meandering music from Architectural’s first projects, 008 is a timely addition to a steadily evolving arsenal of a highly structural and dance-driven catalog.
The artist began to define his Architectural project in 2010 with the inception of his self-titled label. His subsequent releases on Semantica Records and PoleGroup in 2012 and 2013, respectively, laid the groundwork for the spatial and deeply evocative quality that would come to define his ensuing work. Architectural’s most recent releases are particularly demonstrative of Rico’s rare skill for marrying distinct sounds, particularly across jazz and techno.
Cubismo itself is a reflection of the artist’s penchant for fragmenting and reassembling diverse sonic forms, borrowing its ideology and production technique from the artistic movement after which it is named. Cubismo 8.1 and 8.3 are raw, hypnotic, and dance floor-driven. Cubismo 8.3, possibly the most visceral piece on the four track EP, gradually builds tension throughout, overlaying undulating synth lines with distorted surface noise and pitch- shifted phrases. The series of Lost in Buenos Aires tracks, however, are ambient and, at times, incredibly cinematic, utilizing heavily-layered feedback and shivering harmonies. The overall effect is one of abstraction, cohesion, and balance.
Architectural’s obsession with precision has become a hallmark of his work and an apt selection as a moniker. His most recent EP is clear-cut and profoundly complex, as well as an impressive development to the artist’s discography.
Tracklist:
A1 / 1. Cubismo 8.1
A2 / 2. Cubismo 8.2 (Lost in Buenos Aires)
B1 / 3. Cubismo 8.3
B2 / 4. Cubismo 8.4 (Lost in Buenos Aires II)
B3 / 5. Cubismo 8.5 (Lost in Buenos Aires III)
(Bonus track)