Patterns & Light

Chris Child has composed music for commercials and video games, as well as soap operas, for which he has earned several Daytime Emmy nominations. As Kodomo, he releases ambient and melodic IDM with an apparent affinity for the output of labels like Warp, Morr Music, and Ghostly International. Patterns & Light is his third album, following Still Life (5 Points, 2008) and Frozen in Motion (self-released, 2011). Like his previous work, he uses analog and digital gear, but this set applies heavily processed and mutated samples from classical recordings, including drawn-out strings and rolling submerged piano lines, while undetectable elements are likely scattered throughout as well. The tapping electronic blips in the stately neo-dub track "Orange Ocean," however, sound like those of "Rain Dance," from Herbie Hancock's 1973 album Sextant. Among the most evocative tracks are the anxiously racing "Red Giant," the towering "Mind Like a Diamond," the sprightly "Holographic," and, above all, "Impromptu," which incorporates a uniquely spongy bassline, acoustic guitar flicks, and percolating percussion elements to beaming effect. The interludes and shorter tracks that lack a beat were seemingly made with as much care.