I got a real kick out of the titles for Cosmik Cabin. His previous release we reviewed at Divide and Conquer Is entitled Chain of Thought. He has an EP entitled More Thoughts. His most recent release is entitled Spastic Thoughts. I don’t know, it just struck me as funny. The reason he called it Spastic Thoughts is because at “any moment the songs can dive into different sub genres from synthwave, outrun, jazz, blues, dub, trip-hop.”
This idea sounds kind of cool but can easily go off the rails. Switching genres can be jarring and diminish the fluidity of the songs. I equate that at its worst this method can feel like switching radio stations on the FM dial. Does anybody still remember FM radio anyway? Cosmik Cabin however avoids these pitfalls and creates a cohesive experience. The songs are somewhat short never eclipsing the three-minute mark. The songs are all instrumental and in some ways reminded me of the underrated artist and musician Amon Tobin. Up first is “Supple Spatters.” You are greeted with an octave effected guitar of some sort and blaring sine waves. The song is bright as it progresses but refuses to settle in a particular groove for very long. I really was digging the lounge-y bass line which reminded me of Flying Lotus. Things get weird in a good way with “Invaders Of The Body Snatching.” The song does have this alien like quality. It feels somewhere between whimsical and dissonant. “Underground Cloud” has darker tones mirroring some of the cosmic aesthetics of the act Boards of Canada. Somehow “Digital Wasteland” sounds a lot like the name between the white noise and bleeps and blips which sounds like the thinking mind of an unstable A.I. “High From Sleep” is a highlight with some of the most beautiful moments as well as some of the most inventive. “Legend Of The Quest” mixes a hip-hop beat with an 8-bit video game type of palette. This song changes quite a bit moving from vertigo inducing dissonance to something more clear. I heard a Prefus 73 type vibe on “Jive Hive” while “Rolling Hard Under The Stars” sounds like it's about MDMA. He has more success with ambient soundscapes on “Hypnotic Water” and the slow burn of “Can We Bounce?” He isn’t quite done yet as “Cosmik Horror Theme” is a grand sounding song that also salutes basic sine waves and video games. Last up is “Put The Windows Down And Stick Your Head Out” which is a strong closer that pushes things like timing and sonics. Spastic Thoughts is ear candy. It goes into a lot of different spaces and the attention to detail is what makes this album such a pleasure to experience.
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