Insight & Critique
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact

PAul Leon Anderson - Things

8/11/2014

2 Comments

 
Picture
Paul Leon Anderson

Things
self-released; 2014

3.8 out of 5

By Ted Rogen


Paul Leon Anderson fell in love with electronic music at the age of 10 and his debut release entitled Things is his first attempt at the genre. There are a surplus of electronic artists out there these days but a small percentage have the chops to have the production sound as good as you would expect from relatively popular artists like Four Tet or Caribou. A lot of it either sounds muddy, the highs are shrill or the whole dang thing is out of whack. Things was a treat for a number of reasons but I was happy to hear the aesthetics were treated properly and sounded great coming out of my laptop or my studio monitors. 

Musically, Anderson will draw the most comparisons to Boards of Canada. His songs often mix ominous alien-like percussive and atmospheric elements with a strong foundational drumbeat you might find on a hip-hop album. 

First up is “Crush,” which begins as a synth mimics the imagined sound we have in our head of what interstellar travel to the Andromeda galaxy might sound like. Anderson brings us to a planet but not necessarily this one when he introduces percussive elements that almost sound like the combination of a scratch of a vinyl record and the first utterance of someone saying something. 

Anderson follows a similar formula with “Squelcher” where he lays an alien beat on top of a cosmic pad and sets the cogs in motion. The next track “Rotating Decision Unfolder” is both contemplative and ominous concurrently. It’s a unique combination of sounds that might sound stale by themselves but when combined creates a delicate balance of frequencies. 

Anderson proves he isn’t a one-trick pony and takes a stab at a minimal atmospheric piece called “Spectrographic Memory Encoder.” The song’s focal center is an arpeggiated synth that sounds like a laser beam rallying to different checkpoints. With the high end covered a low, murky fog slowly sprawls to fill up the rest of the space.

As the album progresses Anderson pushes boundaries and really starts to come into his own. The last two tracks “Even / Ever / Over” and “Reversible Logic Gate” aren't to be missed.

Anderson has made a statement with his debut. He is a creative electronic artist and it is obvious that he put a lot of time and effort into how he wants his music to sound.
Become A Fan
bandcamp
2 Comments
Cheela MacLeod
8/13/2014 10:26:44 pm

Sounds very interesting. Where can I purchase it?

Reply
Paul Leon Anderson link
8/15/2014 03:41:17 am

You can purchase it on iTunes, on bandcamp.com, and on cdbaby.com...

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

       Critique/insight

    We are dedicated to informing the public about the different types of independent  music that is available for your listening pleasure as well as giving the artist a professional critique from a seasoned music geek. We critique a wide variety of niche genres like experimental, IDM, electronic, ambient, shoegaze and much more.

    Tweets by divideanconqer
    Are you one of our faithful visitors who enjoys our website? Like us on Facebook


    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012

Company

About
Contributors

Newsletter

Newsletter
Book Your Band

© Divide and Conquer 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • DAC
  • Indie Music Album Reviews
  • About
  • Submissions
  • Top albums
  • Features
  • Contact