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Boxus

Knob Twiddlers
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Posts posted by Boxus

  1. Ufabulum was the one album where the flatness of the mix got to me. I like the way this one sounds; it can feel a little muddled when the tracks are at their busiest and a lot of sounds are competing for center stage but it doesn't really bother me.

    I'm loving the album overall, it still has moments that are a little overly pushed/aggro for my tastes (like most of his stuff from Ufab onward) but the atmospheric attention to detail is great and there's a lot of elements that hearken back to things I love about his late 90s material.

    It's interesting he mentioned in the track notes a connection to Vortrack (Fracture Remix) with the use of gated reverb. That was one of my favorite tracks he'd released in years and I was really hoping more of Be Up would have that sound, so I'm thrilled to hear a lot of material on this album that's kind of similar in style to it.

    • Like 3
  2. On 3/8/2024 at 12:42 AM, beerwolf said:

    Only played this album once and I didn't pay too much attention. Sometimes I'm not in the mood for Thom Yorkes vocals, I have to be in the right frame of mind and I guess that's not the case at the moment. I didn't play In Rainbows (funnily enough my favorite) for a few years after release because after The Bends, OK Computer, Kid A and Amnesiac I was burnt out with him. Sometimes I don't play any Radiohead for a couple of years then all of a sudden, like a flick of a switch I can't stop playing them. Strange but true.

    This is my experience too. Got this when it came out and honestly I haven't given it a full listen yet, just haven't really been in the mood. Played the first few tracks a handful of times and I'm enjoying them but it seems like a grower, kind of underwhelming initially.

    Bending Hectic is incredible, I absolutely love that track, but I already listened to it a ton when it came out as a single last year so it feels like its own thing, I don't really associate it with this album yet.

    • Like 2
  3. I love how the bassline on Kronmec shifts between bass guitar and acid line. So many sounds on the album are kind of ambiguous where they could be a synth or live instrumentation or some combination of both.

    The album kind of reminds me of Selection Sixteen, similar blend of styles and dark, dubby vibe in places (like Akkranen, maybe my favorite so far)

    • Like 1
  4. I used Vose In to demonstrate spectrogram visualization to my students today. The end in particular has so much interesting stuff going on across the spectrum and with all of those big isolated events it's really easy to see how the image is reflecting what's going on with the sound.

    They seemed to like the track too (but how could you not?)

     

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  5. Nearing the end of Baldur's Gate 3, my strategy for a while now has been to fill my party with druids and other spellcasters, summon every possible summon, and buff the whole team with aid and longstrider. Combat takes a while with 20+ units on the team but it's so much fun. And it's just so ridiculous walking down the city streets with this massive army of freaks.

    • Like 4
  6. rough top 10:

    • otay:onii - 夢之駭客 Dream Hacker (my favorite discovery of the year, this along with her previous albums, I love it so much)
    • Surgeon - Crash Recoil
    • Rrose - Please Touch
    • Alva Noto - HYbr:ID II
    • Sofia Kourtesis - Madres
    • JPEGMAFIA, Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES
    • isolee - resort island
    • James Blake - Playing Robots into Heaven
    • Matmos - Return to Archive
    • KNOWER - KNOWER FOREVER

    Honorable mention to Aphex and Slowdive - love those albums but they didn't really surprise me and just didn't define my listening as much as the above. And the Autechre live sets were huge for me but I wanted this to be an albums list and I don't consider them albums. Also shout out to Patricia Taxxon - TECHDOG 1-7, a staggering, enormous collection of tracks which is really impressive and sounds great but I haven't listened to it nearly enough yet to really rate it.

    • Like 6
  7. ok this is sick, one of the best albums I've found this week browsing through best of the year lists

    I love how these tracks really bask in the noise and ambiance. It would be easy to just keep the beats riding but I think the restraint of pulling back and soaking in the atmosphere so often makes for a more engaging listen.

  8. Revisiting the Dublin 2018 set for the first time since the new ones dropped. I think this is still my favorite live set they've released. I love the current ones too but I find myself so drawn to the subtler approach on the 16/18 sets, and I've listened to them so much that it feels really comfy, like returning home to this beautiful place I used to live.

    • Like 2
  9. ok I've listened to this a few times now and I fucking love it. He really knows how to craft a mesmerizing soundscape. It fits the mood I've been in this year perfectly.

    There's something so fun about albums released in a series like this. Like I'll be interested in any new Alva Noto but knowing it's a HYbrID or Xerrox is extra exciting.

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  10. I'm really loving BG3 but taking my time with it since I'm usually too busy and braindead after a work day to get deep into it. Also realized there's another DLC out for Case of the Golden Idol, I love that game so much.. played the first new scenario and it's excellent, continues the story from the first DLC really well.

  11. On 9/20/2023 at 8:16 AM, beerwolf said:

    That's an excellent point. I have no fucking idea really what was going on either apart from people screaming and swearing at each other. The first two episodes are a complete garbled mess. In fact to be honest, so is the rest of the fucking show. Just, yelling, swearing, stress.

    Jeff I may fucking bin this.

    Some shows are slow burners, Ozark for example I was constantly in doubt during the first and maybe some of the second season (why am I watching this, why am I watching this, oh its pretty good, why am I watching this, oh its pretty good) then its one of the best. And it takes off. 

    I'm watching season 2 right now (on the penultimate episode) and it's really become one of the best shows I've ever seen. There's a ton of character development this season and it all feels really earned. It actually becomes a surprisingly optimistic series. It's made me cry several times, and I cry pretty easily but the emotion feels earned, I don't think I've seen another show so emotionally honest. It's kind of a masterpiece IMO

    • Thanks 1
  12. Listened to this on au(gust)14 after a bit of a hiatus and I kind of forgot how good it was. I still think m4 -> f7 -> si00 is up there with their all time best opening runs. Been nice reconnecting with it a bit in between the live sets.

    • Like 5
  13. I've been getting really into this the past month or two. First time listening to Surgeon but I've been in a techno mood this year and this is absolutely hitting. Definitely in my top 3 or so of the year so far.

    The more I listen, the more emotional connection I'm getting from it. Felt kind of austere at first and it still has that detachment but there's a ton of heart in it. The vibe kind of seems to alternate between vengeful and melancholy in a really lovely way.

    • Like 4
  14. 5 hours ago, hoggy said:

    Another thing is just adapting to unfamiliar sounds - like when I first heard Type O Negative, Pete Steele's voice sounded kinda cringe and weird, but after I heard it a few more times when friends played it I started to hear the songwriting and the layers in the soundscape, and I realised they weren't just a cheesy novelty band, and I started to notice how they use irony
     

    Oh yeah, adapting to vocal styles is a big one for me too. I wasn't that into Fugazi at first because I had never liked punk that much and didn't connect with the vocal delivery, but I appreciated the instrumentation and kept listening, and pretty soon a switch flipped and I started to love the way they sing as well. And recently I've become really obsessed with their whole discography - I'm so glad I stuck with it.

    • Like 1
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