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shen ao 

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Tianjin-born, London-based producer and pianist shen ao steps up with a double-header debut tape on Kit. Part prog-jazz fantasy score, part moss-encrusted computer boogie download, 𝒄𝒚𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 / 𝒃𝒖𝒈 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚 is quite unlike anything we've released (or encountered) before.

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Drawing on the intense emotions and melodic undercurrents of Baroque music, the intricate, evolving structures of prog rock, and the searing palettes of classic video game soundtracks, ao seems to have pulled an entirely new musical genre out of his back pocket (whilst practising ludicrous arpeggios with the other hand).

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On side A (𝒄𝒚𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆), formidable harmonies and befuddling rhythms flex with casual bombast across five movements of knee-wiggling, tear duct-tingling, and downright bizarre audio. An overall picture emerges like the sonic blueprint of some colossal, floating folly: improbable turrets, flying buttresses patched with digital ivy, crevices and staircases that twist and turn in on themselves - all hung in glimmering space.

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The flip side (𝒃𝒖𝒈 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚) sees ao pass the magnifying glass over five gleeful vignettes - illuminating a carnival of errors, circuitry imbued with cheeky ghouls, and glitches in the petri dish. As the party devolves, a sense of urgency ratchets ever higher, peaking tangibly on the fevered chicanes carving up 'adapter in use', and the giddy skronk of 'nowhere to hide'. The title track is nothing if not a certified heater.

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Recommended if you like Joanna Wang, Gentle Giant, J.S. Bach, Vic Bang, Sun Araw, Hakushi Hasegawa.

 

Tapes are available! Beautiful risograph artwork by Amelie Ryder-Potter, printed at Pagemasters.

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