It's been twenty years since William Beven's cataclysmic entry to the music world. "South London Burroughs" in 2005, and the two albums released after it - "Bural" (2006) and "Untrue" (2007) have since become the stuff of modern day folklore. With countless 'best of ' accolaides, university-grade dissections and deep dives into the producer's process, and, of course, the famous Sun article to uncover his then-anonymous identity.
Since those monumental long players, the producer's sole focus has been EPs and occassional collaborations, with a (general) trend of veering futher and further away from the FWD>> and Plastic People flavoured dancefloors that were his main inspiration. It is in such grounds we find "Comafields" and "Imaginary Festival".
"Comafields" opens with droning bass, eerie arps and rising noise; with the producer's trademark ghosted vox tentetively appearing through various moments of the mix. Eventually, remnants of a rhythm appear through smudged kick drums and his coke-can hats smeared into audio obscurity. (Typically) conversely for the producer, the track seems able to impart both tension and release on the listener at the same time, and is a highly evocative and expansive sonic futurescape.
"Imaginary Festival" begins in similarly hesitant form. Echoes of Burialesque rhytthms pepper the background of the mix, while more of his unique auto-tune occassionally mutters a brief melody motif. Slowly, degragmented rave riffs enter the environment, only to drop out again as quickly as they appears. It's a stuttered, stop-star listen, a theme we've seen throughout his discography. One for the headphones on cold rainy nights through the city. I don't think anyone sonically depicts inner city melancholy and radioactive warmth like Burial.
Since those monumental long players, the producer's sole focus has been EPs and occassional collaborations, with a (general) trend of veering futher and further away from the FWD>> and Plastic People flavoured dancefloors that were his main inspiration. It is in such grounds we find "Comafields" and "Imaginary Festival".
"Comafields" opens with droning bass, eerie arps and rising noise; with the producer's trademark ghosted vox tentetively appearing through various moments of the mix. Eventually, remnants of a rhythm appear through smudged kick drums and his coke-can hats smeared into audio obscurity. (Typically) conversely for the producer, the track seems able to impart both tension and release on the listener at the same time, and is a highly evocative and expansive sonic futurescape.
"Imaginary Festival" begins in similarly hesitant form. Echoes of Burialesque rhytthms pepper the background of the mix, while more of his unique auto-tune occassionally mutters a brief melody motif. Slowly, degragmented rave riffs enter the environment, only to drop out again as quickly as they appears. It's a stuttered, stop-star listen, a theme we've seen throughout his discography. One for the headphones on cold rainy nights through the city. I don't think anyone sonically depicts inner city melancholy and radioactive warmth like Burial.
STAFF COMMENTS
Matt says: Veering deeper into experimentation and atmospheres rather than your straight up garage tracks, William Bevan celebrates 20 years at the cutting edge of sonic adventuring with a fresh new double headed 12".TRACK LISTING
A. Comafields 12:03
AA. Imaginary Festival 10:45