Music Review: Hybrid - Soundsystem 01

Hybrid fans are in for both a treat and a shock with their latest release, a double-disc DJ set entitled Soundsystem 01. The Hybrid duo are generally known for their very large and very lush orchestral big-beat albums, packed to the gills with a mixture of gritty breaks and polished strings. It's epic electronica, has very few peers, and ends up setting trends while following very few.

Which is why it's curious that this new release departs from that formula. Perhaps it's not so much a departure as a deconstruction of parts, because since it's a mix primarily focused on other people's work, it gives the opportunity to perhaps give emphasis to their influences. And as wide as you can imagine their influences ranging, so is the distance of styles on the two discs of Soundsystem 01.

The first disc is very slow, highlighted by cinematic swells and glitchy ambiance. It would be misleading to call it chillout, though, because this is not martini lounge music, and neither is it for Balearic sunsets. As fine as those are, this is something else entirely. In fact, it's more appropriate to go ahead and play the "soundtrack" card, because not only is that its aim, but its ingredients. With some allusions in style to Massive Attack's soundtrack efforts, Hybrid also have a growing list of their own.

In partnership with film composer and Hybrid-collaborator Harry Gregson Williams, several cuts on this first disc, including the opener "Desert Chase", bathe in this soundtrack quality and form the core of its sound. The experience is dark, brooding and textured, with moments of quiet escape and crystalline calm. Artists such as Trentemoller and Spooky, as well as Luke Chable and Phil K.'s Lostep project, receive blended spins and stylistic touch points for the sound.

The pace varies from a gentle hum to downtempo dub, and is largely instrumental. Vocals gradually enter the mix towards the end, most notably with Hybrid vocalist Charlotte James' track "Shadows of the City" and the Ryuichi Sakamoto with David Sylvian collaboration, "World Citizen." Disc one is a seamlessly introspective journey that ends long before it's due.

As a stark contrast to the first disc, the second disc shows a distinctly more club feel. But again, don't expect a typical house or trance or whatever set, because you'll be both disappointed and missing something much more interesting. This is the more heady and textured techno complement to the first disc, with the energy ramped up more than several notches. It's Headphone House and Backroads Breaks, most recently explored with some of Sasha's latest mixes (if you've heard his live set from Avalon in Los Angeles, then that's a comparable reference point).

Article Author: David R Perry

Lost somewhere in the rolling hills of Tennessee, David R Perry can occasionally be found doing dark, unspeakable things to words. Printed words, spoken words, electronically mangled words... really any kind but twittered words.

Visit David R Perry's author page — David R Perry's Blog