Dust Science release their first sampler Keep The Faith this month. A collection of eleven tracks from that offer a range of sounds that should keep the more discerning fan of electronica happy for a while. Featuring known commodities such Anthony Shakir, Richard H Kirk (Cabaret Voltaire) and Black Dog what you get for your money are eleven delicious slices of leftfield electronica.
Whether it be tracks like Shakir’s smooth washes and edgy noises mixed with lolloping punchy drum loops or tracks like Kirk’s moody brooding sounds etched with plaintive bleeps and glitchy percussive sounds this is something that offers itself as something with lasting appeal.
Novelty free in its execution these tracks rely on first rate production and a gimmick free environment. The absence of cheap frothy builds make way for a more subtle method of progression.
Tracks like Derailleur offer a return to the glassy synth stabs of Detroit while Dan Curtin’s Shining offers a hybridised mixture of old school vocal cuts and squelches with a decidedly modernistic overlay.
Black Dog make two appearances on the sampler the one to note being 4 3s 555 appearing in remixed form courtesy of Vince Watson. A gorgeous sweeping drama held together by a sturdy but never overplayed drum patterns. The sound is almost warm, definitely melancholy. And for me this represents a real high point in the collection. Gorgeous.
Fred Giannelli’s Distant Gratification almost equals it with a sweeping use of glittering space, while Shawn Rudiman’s Through The Dark serves as the album’s great leveller. While the album closes with Carl Taylor’s glacial Ataraxia.
As a whole the sampler is definitely worthy of your time and if this is a benchmark of what the label has to offer then Dust Science must surely continue to be worthy of our attention.
