Finnish duet's return after three years of silence is, of no doubt, a great event in the world of experimental music. Since the time when Ilpo Ilpo Väisänen and Mika Vainio stormed into the music lovers' minds, their music, full of rustling and crashes, is considered to be the standard for 'noisy' electronics.Perhaps nobody can stay indifferent to the cold experiments of pansonics - you just love them or hate. It's very pleasant that this album is made with the same concept.
Katodivaihe starts with a very pleasant surprise - on the third minute of the first track "Virta 1" we hear violoncello (Icelander Hildur Gudnadottir) howling led by monotonous electrified bits. Slowly and melancholically one note flows into another one winding round the impartial Finnish rhythm-construction. Experiments with this string instrument will be heard in the following two tracks Suhteellinen - very abstract and minimal picture, some kind of dark tunnel, at the end of which everything bursts with the extremely noise construction. "Virta 2" is the overloaded remake of its original version where violoncello is turned into heavy metal device.
In general, Pan Sonic stayed the same electronic maniac musicians on principle recording all their tracks alive on DAT tape recorders with the help of homemade analogue top-generators and some samples in rhythms sections. The album's mood changes with lightning speed - from cold and thoughtful "Laptevinmeri" with thin rhythm cables and deep melodies to explosive, noisy trash tracks "Koneistaja" and "Tykitys".
In brief, original and familiar Finnish project feels fit again and is ready for new musical experiments.
- blast first petite