Scis

Ovals 2016 full-length Popp was a startling, exciting reinvention for the long-running electronic project. While best known for helping to pioneer the glitch aesthetic during the 1990s by creating oddly soothing pieces that incorporated the sounds of skipping compact discs, Oval has continually evolved and explored different approaches over the years, from the electro-acoustic miniatures of 2010s O to the vocal collaborations of 2013s Calidostopia! (recorded during a ten-day studio session in Brazil). Popp was a whole new ball game, with a much heavier focus on songwriting, and a newfound embrace of sonic maximalism. Bright, colorful, and abundantly playful, the album featured diced vocals, heavy beat patterns, and an overall sense of constantly being overwhelmed and astonished. Appearing on Thrill Jockey once again, Oval continued in this direction with the 2019 EP Eksploio and 2020 full-length Scis. In some ways, Scis feels slightly less busy than Popp -- theres a little bit more breathing room in the arrangements, and more space for melodies to shine through. Its essentially a melodic whirlpool of acoustic tones, bombastic beats, and darting, buzzing bass lines. Fluoresso mixes gamelan-sounding percussion with the crunchy glitches and heavy drums, and Pushhh is a neatly organized cavalcade of scrambled pop vocals, clearing the way for a gentle bridge of pizzicato strings before piling on numerous layers of sounds for the tracks finale. Cozzmo would be an excellent soundtrack for a complex, futuristic pinball game, heavy on rapidly flashing lights and bonus levels. Oxagon assembles clinking and splashing sounds into a chiming melody enhanced by strings and pianos, sort of resembling an Oval version of the post-Brainfeeder school of production. Just as vibrant and full of wonder as Popp, Scis is another imaginative, unpredictable world of sound. ~ Paul Simpson

前作ではオヴァルなりのポップな作風を試みたが、それを更に推し進めたのが今作『SCIS』。声の素材こそほぼ皆無だが、ビートメイカーにも負けない肉感的グルーヴ、随所で耳を奪われる美麗かつ心躍るメロディ、プリペアド・ピアノ/木管楽器/ストリングスなど優しい音色をビートの素材として使用といったことが相まって、間口の広さは前作と同等かそれ以上だろう。しかし、まるで即興演奏のように予測の出来ない複雑なリズムと先述した要素が緻密に重なり合う楽曲は、取っ付き易さとは裏腹に腰を据えて何度でも聴き直したい面白さを秘めている。
intoxicate (C)青木正之