Moiré / Moire

Although credited to Ian Boddy and Bernhard Wostheinrich, Moire, the pair's first collaborative effort, was a complicated birth, involving the assistance of midwife Markus Reuter. He edited the pair's recordings, which were then further refined by Wostheinrich, with he and Boddy then honing the final arrangements and mixes. All told, the process took three years to complete. But as you'd expect from this trio, the effort was worth it, and the resultant album, a kaleidoscope of all electronic music has to offer. "Accretion," "Perambulator," "Method Count," and "Smash & Grab" are all distinctly rhythm driven. In fact, the first two seem almost continuations of the same piece, with the former featuring a bubblier feel, the latter a decidedly more pusillanimous air. "Method," in contrast, is the flip of these two darker numbers, which once past its cosmic intro quickly evolves into a bright, breezy, cheery piece, highlighted by its smile-inducing bouncy rhythm. That track hints of new wave, "Smash," on the other hand, is a joy ride by a bunch of car-jackers on Kraftwerk's "Autobahn," its hypnotic atmosphere, tough feel, and high tension rhythm are compulsive, yet fraught with danger. But that's nothing compared to the sense of foreboding that wraps itself around the discomforting "Diaphragm," a track determined to squeeze the very breath out of the listener. In an even more experimental vein comes "Fractalise," whose title perfectly sums up its fragmentary nature. "Moire" itself is awash in sequenced blips and bleeps, which bounce jubilantly around swirling sequences, while "Diffractions" moves into heavy atmospheres and spacier realms. "Cloister" is equally atmosphere drenched, its core sound a pealing bell, around which rhythms play. And then there's "Scorpio," a track that stands apart in sound, style and effect. Industrialized effects pump out around spiky, angular rhythms, but with subtle shifts, the piece turns towards techno, slides in and out of industrial dance, and takes on a grand Teutonic air. As with every DiN release, Moire is a grand adventure, fizzing with inspiration and creativity, an album that takes many chances and effortlessly pulls off each and every one. It's an intriguing set, and a thoroughly engrossing album.