Subatomic

Afterlife – Mushroom Pie – Subatomic

For the final review of the year it is good to end on something special.

The musical architecture supporting Mushroom Pie feeds into a mind-set blinded by science confirming the emotional intelligence of musical excellence. Driven by a slinky rhythm set the moods created are both warmly melodic, playfully inquisitive as Hush Forever’s whispered intentions fill the airwaves with soulful charge. Songs can occupy a valuable space in the cultural landscape and this one fits nicely into the jigsaw. I suspect Big Bud may be a self-explanatory title but either way it supplies more sumptuous grooves pulsing with reviving sprinkles of piano, deep lowdown bass and spaced-out future echoes capturing the reassurance of comfort. Am I Really Here Again, continues with a dance of breathy voices as the tempo is slowed right down to an enviable stroll into blissed atmospheres that reverberate like a rush of fresh air around the room. You can hear the word, Love on the horizon. The beautiful, drifting melodies of Home Planet then finalise the release crafted by the blessings of nature, inspired by a higher plane captured within this outstading piece of music.

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Afterlife – Mother Nature Land – Subatomic

Attention to detail. Attention to life. Afterlife continue a ceaseless soundtracking of the seasons with this latest collection which as the title states is a timely reminder of the importance of the source. Mother Nature Land pulses with strident drums and an almighty blast of heavenly persuasion in the form of cool chords, sweet strings and vocodered voices. Beautiful. James Bright’s excellent reworking of Rising Up follows criss-crossing the boundaries of breaks and Balearic most wonderfully, arriving packed full of rich heart-warming melodic exchanges.

The intensely primed Unity Gain plunges your circuitry inside a web of sonic fusion next combing elements of techno, bliss and pure liquid funk. Leaving the cool combination of Café del Mar resident, Ken Fan and Afterlife to serve up the ultra-smooth Ibango Dub featuring the most notable percussionist Trace Harris, a key inspiration behind the Ibiza collective Ibango Tribe, who together provide a crescendo of rhythmic paradise while seeking out a never-ending high.

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Afterlife – Mahalo EP – Subatomic

Mahalo sounds like the party has already started. Dancing with crazy pleasure, lost in a tomorrow of future Jazz incantations, sharp beats and smooth chords talking up soulful yesterday’s while notes melt together celebrating. The title track from this latest collection is, and I seem to be repeating the words again, one of his finest to date exploring uncharted combinations of fizzy electronics with a hot Latin percussive pulse, there seems to be something new at play here, like a spring in the step. Sundrops feels more like Afterlife at home reclining in the sunshine of our days with cool grooves driven by the joyous rhythms of excess alongside the rapture of fizzy keys. The standalone Liberty Cap follows plugged into somewhere else entirely with broken drums fixing a hole where your mind might wonder through an escape of cosmic keys and moody 1980’s cinematic synthesizers accompanied by the flickering haunt of nostalgia. To end, Morning Dub visits another favourite territory for the artist as the shuffle of Jamaica meanders off into the distance of sunny uplands grasping a positive charge of depth, soul and echo. Excellent.

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Afterlife – Rising Up – Subatomic

A song for our times. Rising Up sums up the yin and yang transcribing the capacity of music to effect the possibility of positive change. I think this has to be one of my favourite Afterlife compositions to date, something to do with that meandering, warm bass and pads accompanied by a summer of excitement as the sounds dance, tempting fate. Then that beautiful piano appears in a short burst.

The slightly surreal Casual Bungalow dives into suburban bliss next relaxing the tempo with some serious vibes, smooth and low. Then what can you really say about Medicine Man apart from soak up that wondrous journey all for yourself, it’s a glorious piece of music primed to expand mind, body and much else besides. Which leaves us at the point of no return with the final, tense pulse of Way Out West ending on a series of captivating chords plus a seductive shuffle of melodic inclination, best described as hot sublimity causing synthesizers to soar and burn.

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Afterlife – Medicine Man – Subatomic

Beginning with an evocative splash of delayed reverberation time rapidly expands into the New Year as hopes, dreams along with a selection of desires tempt the mind. Once again Afterlife finely tune organic strains of music into likeminded thinking, this time round enveloping you in life reassuring instrumentation by replacing the clouds outside with a positive vibration of sunshine. This in ways feels lighter than previous releases and yet is so very beautifully uplifting until the very end

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Afterlife – Bluedog – Subatomic

Chasing your own tail can be a distinctive, timely occupation that many of us will be familiar with. The by-product of some ancient tradition or due to more contemporary stresses and strains, either way if it’s good enough for dogs then why not humans. This latest number in the sequence sees Afterlife exercises the ghost of a bluesy past with haunting keys colouring the field of vision, drenched in history while reflecting questions about matters blue, until a wash of electronics rise across the background cementing emotion and content splendidly. I’m not usually one for fade outs but in this case it seems like the right thing to do as the music enters, makes its presence felt, then exists having spoken the universal language of understanding.

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Afterlife – Metamorphosis of Narcissus – Subatomic

If music of distinction is about provoking emotions, while capturing the essence of the human spirit in all its complexities, then for some inexplicable, perhaps even hidden reason The Durutti Column’s Vini Reilly springs to mind when listening to the opening sequence of Metamorphosis of Narcissus. Not in a nostalgic way but reinforcing the possibilities of creative excitement and forward reaching motion, just like he did, within the power of sound to grasp at the radical contrast between revolution and romance, rather than the safe, soft escape into a rose-tinted history which is so prevalent today.

However, a little after mid-point all of that joyful celebration and wonder crumbles to be subsumed by a much darker brush of brutal intensity highlighting the storm of narcissism currently igniting the cultural horizon (which you can see reflected on the video). And therein lies the beauty of Afterlife’s immersive divergence, juxtaposing the elements to confound expectation. I can almost hear the echo of Hendrix or Jimmy Page coming into to play in amongst the breakdown of what is holy to reveal the spectre of Narcissus as the song plays outside of itself powerfully, without compromise. Not that this is about past reference or mixing up genres in any way – who would dare cofound the division of genre labelling after all – but more about exploring sound in enriching, life-affirming ways.

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Afterlife – Moksha – Subatomic

Fuelling a lifetime of experience are Steve Miller’s uniquely crafted sonic journeys which begin at the point of imagination, ending up somewhere down the line at fast-forward destinations. In the case of Moksha that proves to be a fiery blend of sizzling electronic tones creatiing a free-form of expression, hinting at classic Detroit, while adding up a wealth of Jazzy sensibilities. Next and probably my favourite of the four numbers are the beautiful, life affirming notes that adorn Ad Astra. Taking the listener into other aspects of the possible this sequence of soul-drenched chords are not just indelibly human but together with a shuffle of drums and unison of voices they feed the feeling of exultation.

The pulse that is Jamaican dub is never far from reach via Afterlife and Abraxas testifies to that very influence as the sway of rhythm breezes throughout its cool keys and hot vocal touches that yearn for the embrace of Grace. The final number Dreadbox (featuring Cafe del Mar DJ, Ken Fan) again channels those vibrant colours into skanking pleasure, this time sprinkling rolling drums and bass with even more earth shattering depth.

Release: August 25
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Afterlife – Baywatch – Subatomic

This excellent new EP from Afterlife does just what you would hope casting aside the expected, surprising your senses in a multitude of refreshing ways. Producing a lifetime of soul searching music is a quality in itself but when it comes in this calibre it’s something we can all join in celebrating. Fly opens the release via an illuminating flash revealing the promise of what this summer holds in store, feasting on emotions that are eloquent and elegant. Accompanied by a resolutely gentle pulse of electronic drums its swirling wash of instrumentation adds punch and clarity to the holiday of your imagination. Next is the tougher chug provided by the title track setting the tone racing as bigtime bass explodes across a wealth of fizzy synthesizers, then complimented by the emotional roller-coaster of The Bridge complete with its jazzy/ bluesy mind-altering brilliance. Lost Tribes completes the journey with liquid intensity bubbling, meandering across a whirlwind of probing keys that never leave you asking for more…

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Afterlife – Resistance – Subatomic

The bass throb igniting the opening bars of Resistance says more in seconds than a life time of evocative words. This feels like the point at which Afterlife has transformed their linage of ideas into defiantly something else. Perhaps that’s an abstract notion but you can hear the amalgamation of all thats gone before blossom into the art of Resistance. You can also experience that playing out in the loose shape of eastern influences drifting across the sea of punctuating percussion, likewise in the accompanying configuration of four/ floor drum hits, combining fundamental elements of dancefloor urgency with the uplift of soulful introspection. Two versions of Resistance are then perfectly realised by Sean Johnson (aka Hardway Bros aka one part ALFOS sonic pioneer) fusing the still provocative influence of Detroit’s Techno heritage to the expansive atmosphere’s imagined by Afterlife’s timely notation. Both provide the stimulation of an intoxicating retelling of the theme. Then more typically associated with Afterlie’s originator is second number Antifearance which adds a funkier, sunshine swing to its collective rhythms, breathing in the swell and shimmer of synthesized sound in all its glory. Nice line in garments too.

Release: December 11
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