Psychogenica is the debut album of Ajja - the “brother” of Gaspard in the duet Yab-Yum, and a founding member of the quartet The Peaking Goddess Collective and label manager in Peak Records - so Ajja has an enormous career in the psychedelic world music. If you have already heard this CD then you know that you can expect: lots of sonorities very similar to Yab-Yum project, but in this case funkier orientated.
But let’s have an inside into the music:
Tripmunch (T1) is an excellent appetizer for this CD – it reflects all you can expect through out the CD, funky rhythms always together with those blissful and strident sounds and that special work on the albino softsynth – or so it seems to my ears. It is interesting and Ajja already confessed he is totally addicted to this softsynth, and in fact he makes wonders with it.
Now we move into Romance In Ab (T2), and this one is more orientated to deeper sonorities, the sounds coming out of this one are not so “happier”, but a little bit more obscurer but always keeping that groovy side. A break here and there with lots of “sponge” sounds. This is a nice introspective track.
Juicy Shrooms (T3) is more into an R2D2 sounds, more random and spacey sounds. This is very, very similar to Yab-Yum sonorities. It reminded me the album Nocturnal Emissions.
The next track Funklestilskin (T4) begins with a strong bass and power kick, and at 1:15 minutes there is an interesting electric lead - that will repeat more ahead but way more laboured. This tune is filled up with little sounds and some attractive build ups, packed with hypnotic resonances. But the main lead, the electrical one, is really tasteful - approved and recommended. Favourite.
Now moving into Spitfire (T5). This one, like the previous tune, begins with a strong kick and a fat bass line. Some cracking sounds in the beginning, make us take flight with this music. This tune isn’t much filled with sounds, it is kind of minimalist - but let me tell, this one is very well conceived tune. The ways the sounds are organized create a great vibe. I particularly like the manner some leads go up and down, seeming they appear from the nothing, taking your ears in an spiral, and right when the sounds fade, other sonorities appear, but this is conceived with no rush of things...it is almost natural the way the sounds morph and fuse with one another’s. Favourite.
Lingus Khan (T6) may be described what I call “drop” sounds – some strident sounds, and some ups and downs with some leads mixed with hypnotic sonorities. This tune is aimed, in my opinion, into more meditation states.
“What would you think; if I told that you, me, came from outer space…weird it sounds it’s true”. This is the sample in which We Are All Aliens (T7) begins. And it begins with an extra strong dose of base and kick. At 55 seconds enter an excellent lead, full of groove ness and feeling with some samples on the background. This twisted tune, delivers some excellent dancing elements as well has “food” for the brain. It has also some electric sounds very well picked. Another favourite.
Archetype (T8) is probably from all the tracks of the album the more disconcerted, disconnected with reality. The tune is filled up with weird, odd, bizarre sounds – there are some nice changes on the bass line, some onto lower notes, and others to upper notes. You can expect the regular work of Ajja in this track, but there are really some weird sounds in this music. Wicked tune.
Solar (T9), begins with some extended and continuum lead. Interesting in this track are the brakes – the work on them are very nice. And the way the music starts after the brakes is also very good; the explosion that happens after the brakes is well conceived. The work on the acid sounds is nice also, but the tune is somehow not very “happy”. The used sounds are more obscure then its sisters. This one didn’t appealed me much, it has it’s moments but really didn’t liked it much.
Now Spikedelic (T10) leaves the obscurer territory and moves into the twisted sounds. Some percussive elements, almost metallic ones give a nice approach into the tune. Again we have some distorted sounds and hypnotic elements on the mixture.
And now we are into the last track: Peripheral Visions (T11), well this one is mad with some darker atmosphere sounds, but this one has a particularity I enjoy: some gentle female sang samples – ok you can call me fluffy, but I have stated sometimes before - I dig this type of sounds, that remind me some old Goa trance tunes, full of spirituality, and…oh well, what can I do? Nothing I think, just follow my tastes and my beliefs. This is another favourite track and it reflects this entire album - groovy with nice psychedelic sounds not at all aggressive, and very well assimilated.
The artwork is also very interesting and inside the booklet we can find a painting made by Filip Leu – whom I think is Ajja´s brother, called "ThingFish in New York", very twisted, very psychedelic.
The mastering was made by Charles (Tryptich)@ preference. |
