Isolee – “Hermelin ” – [Playhouse]

Thurston Hunger   4/15/2007   12-inch, A Library

Isolee is Rajko Muller, this EP out on Klang Elektronik’s sister label
Playhouse… The side long title track is somehow plush and minimal at
the same time…these taught rubber band bamboo synth sounds, some good
soda pop drum machine clops, a little razor near the ear at times and
every so often a whiff of 2000 Light Years mellotron. Aaaaah. Add some
cool chords splayed out for refreshment and serve this one chilled at
45 rpm.

On the flip side, “Willy Skipper” has a similar vibe to “Hermelin” at
a very different speed…33 rpm. This one is a bit more robotic, with
some droid-blurbs over a nice square-wave step-pattern melody. Percussion
clicks tick up into near-bird chirps, another example of the simple and
the elegant. Drop this one on the catwalk and let it preen a bit, not
as mesmerizing as the lead-off number…but it’s got some drive.

Lastly there is “Sleazy Bee” (sounds like exercise equipment for lazy
folks, or maybe some sort of honey-sweetened smoothie??). This rolls
like an homage to the sorta booty slap techno that never buzzed my
bonnet. But if you want that fat round sound, this one pumps it out
heavy, with kind of egyptian cheese keyboards. Little stacatto lines
dotting the thicker bottom. S’alright, but I’ll be spending my spins
on the first two stellar plinkers.

-Thurston Hunger