Formulae

After a couple of split releases and some CD-Roms, Rusuden (aka Justin Morgan) makes his full-length debut, as such, with Formulae — a title that, admittedly, gives the game away at least a little, and doubtless intentionally. Rusuden isn't aiming to immediately upset or surprise anyone familiar with the various strands of IDM music, whether it's the Aphex Twin's trademark combination of noise and twinkling prettiness (thus "Gitd Trea Cylm" — the title alone, after all!) or numerous variations, courtesy of labelmates on Warp like Boards of Canada or µ-Ziq. But allowing for the fact that debuts can lay the groundwork for something else, Formulae isn't bad on its own merits; it's a kind of ambient music for those already well-versed in the styles, and for newcomers, it's an enjoyable enough diversion on its own. Rusuden is clearly not aiming at some sort of fragmented disruption a lá Autechre, say — his songs all have some sort of central melody amid the at times crisp, and at times murky beats. More than once he demonstrates a sense of listening beyond the bounds of Laptop 101 as well — "Day Breaks," to its credit, has a lead piano and bassline that could be from a dawn-of-the-'90s techno anthem (though notably, the percussion is anything but acid pulse exultation). Elsewhere, when he really tweaks around the drums in full bodyslam fashion — "Yr Brooding Distortion" is mighty strong, "Jellies in a Vaccum" simpler, but invigorating nonetheless — even more promise surfaces. Still sort of early days yet for Rusuden, but give him time, and things could get even more interesting as they go — and credit for him for the amusing song title "Laptop Vagabond."