IOL is a producer from Port Orchard, Washington who recently released doubt. The album is an instrumental, dark and features a nice array of sounds while sounding cohesive.
The album starts with “{xx” which definitely has some dark overtones. That being said the 4/4 hip-hop beat gives it a sense of familiarity and I was actually expecting some rapping. He has some more success with “ReEeEe!!” which again is dark and perhaps does an even better job at creating a sense of doom. “pink insulation in the attic” was a highlight. I really like how the rickety acoustic guitar sounded. The move away from the big hip-hop sounding drums was a good move as well. There are some additional percussive elements as well which gave this song a feeling of menace and dread. “hes coming.” is ambient and features low hums and some circular piano melodies while the album highlight “doubt” features some especially haunting notes which sound like detuned guitars. The subdued “the ossuary” is also really well done while “delirious” is both calming (the sound of rain) but also terrifying in some ways. “what happens when we die?” is meditative and zen in some sense. It’s very minimal and just straight ambient with one slow burn of a drone making itself known. “the Old Woman with the Black Dog” sounds like you are walking through a different dimension and it was one of the songs that felt like there might be some sense of light somewhere. He closes with “chrysalis (bonus)” and I had a feeling I was going into a dark rave. This is a very good debut. I liked the fact every song wasn’t relying on a strong hip-hop beat to carry the song. Too much of just that and I often feel like I'm listening to a loop. He mixes it up quite well but also displays a cohesive quality between all the tracks. I really liked the trajectory the artist seems to be on and hopefully this is just the beginning. I’m looking forward to hearing more.
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Critique/insightWe are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.
Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook
Archives
May 2024
|