Ekoplekz - Reflekzionz - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Ekoplekz delivers his third long-player for Planet Mu, and whilst the murky four-track cassette sound and dirty analogue textures are still very much in place, keen ears might spot a subtle change in emphasis. There are less of the radiophonic sci-fi sounds, ancient drum machines and none of the post-punk bass or guitar. Instead, Nick Edwards mainly focuses on invoking a blurry, saturated false-memory of the leftfield electronica that was the soundtrack to his life in the early to mid-1990s. As the album title suggests, InchReflekzionzInch is a record that unapologetically dwells on past experiences, like flicking through an old album of bleached-out photos from days gone by, and on tracks like InchDowntoneInch, with it's extended, unchanging groove and wash of muted, untethered synth melody, the aim is to invite the listener to join in a state of reverie. InchMidnight CliffsInch and InchSaturation (Full Rinse)Inch are unabashed homages to the artists who inspired Edwards, but always with enough production twists and turns to ensure the results are never simply a facsimile of the originals. Opening track InchA Caustic RomanceInch could almost be a lost AFX beat but adds a touch of hand-played niave melody that brings to mind mid-seventies Cluster, blending different eras in a lo-fi melting pot. Elsewhere there are other influences on display. InchQuakers Road SkankInch sounds like Raymond Scott jamming with Lee Perry at the Black Ark InchRepeater (How Did It Feel?)Inch tips it's hat to the work of indie-psych gods Spacemen 3, whilst InchSeduktionInch adds a touch of Kraftwerk-like metallic sheen. But as with practically all Ekoplekz records, the unifying factor is the primitive dubwise production, heavy on the filtering, echo and equalisation, never more apparent than on InchDubnium 268Inch where heavy layers of drone and melody crash and burn along an unstable rhythm