On "Ways Of Seeing" Konx-om-Pax has switched up the mood and hit gold. He has made an album that is filled with joy and sunshine, saturated with the classic feel of Berlin techno. Tom Scholefield has moved on from the dark ambient and brittle rave of the first two Konx-om-Pax albums, which were a reflection of his hometown Glasgow's electronic music scenes. After a recent move to Berlin, the textures of Glasgow's musical strains have fused into an accessible and friendly mix of poppy melodic electronica built from a stricter 'less is more' sound palette, closer in spirit to the music of his adopted city. It is also a record which was made in opposition to recent music he has been hearing, in particular the troubled, dark and noisy experimental music coming out of Berlin. Tom wanted to focus on more joyful qualities, making this a record imbued with warmth and happiness, a panacea to the darkness and disorientation all around in 2019. Having a social scene full of producers has also influenced the album.

The opening track "LA Melody" came from staying with Ross Birchard (Hudson Mohawke) at his house in LA, hanging out in the glorious sunshine with him and Lunice working on tracks. 'Initially Ross asked me to write some melodies to use in a project he was producing, but I ended up liking it so much I decided to keep the riff. I generally write music alone, but being around other producers gave me a certain excited energy that reminded me of after-parties back in Glasgow where Ross and myself spent our youth together. Spending time in Clark's studio also helped me improve my workflow and sequencing the album by seeing the way he does things'. On "Säule Acid" he collaborates with Silvia Kastel and in "I’m For Real" the vocals of Glaswegian DJ / producer Nightwave filter around the track. Stripped away to just the good bits, "Ways Of Seeing" is a pleasure to listen to. 

TRACK LISTING

01/ LA Melody
02/ Säule Acid (ft. Silvia Kastel)
03/ Paris 5am
04/ I'm For Real (ft. Nightwave)
05/ Rez
06/ Optimism Over Despair
07/ Earthly Delights
08/ Missing Something
09/ Day Dreams
10/ Magenta One
11/ The Paleontologist

You might be familiar with Konx-om-Pax previous work without already being aware of it. His real name is Tom Scholefield, he’s from Glasgow, and as a 3D film director and graphic artist he’s made videos for locals Hudson Mohawke and Mogwai as well as Martyn, Jamie Lidell, Kuedo and Lone, created sleeve artwork for Oneohtrix Point Never, Rustie, King Midas Sound and others, plus he has toured with Mogwai as a DJ.

So how on earth does he find the time to make music, or the energy? Tom explains that he makes music to chill out, a form of creative self medication. In contrast to his bright, synthetic and colourful artwork and videos, his music is more mossy and analogue. Often beatless, personal and located in a transporting surrealism, it's sometimes inspired by the idea of rescoring films and TV. 'Glacier Mountain Descent', for instance, is a re-imagining of the start of Werner Herzog’s 'Aguirre'. At other times tracks are inspired by nostalgia for childhood feelings, while watery immersion is a running theme, and a sense of Scottish surrealism is another. Tom started out making tracks in his teens, copying the synth lines he’d heard on prog house CDs, before graduating to a deep fascination with Jeff Mills and Drexciya’s hermetic imagery and alien funk after hearing them on John Peel’s show. This led him to creating lo-fi techno, then DJing and promoting events at art school, which developed his knowledge, driving him to formulate an aesthetic of unpolished, textured and emotive music. 'Regional Surrealism' works largely like a film. Vignettes like 'Isotonic Pool' transition into larger more dramatic pieces like the deep 'At Home With Mum and Dad' which takes an early Aphex sounding ambient track and fills it with odd drama. 'Sura-Tura-Gnosi-Cosi' featuring mysterious U.S. artist Steven Retchard is full of tape-hiss and unsettling spoken word, while 'Zang-Tumb' - with guitar played by Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite - works in bruised and twisted Ash-Ra Tempel territory. Elsewhere 'Slootering' finds a sweet spot between Drexciya and Oneohtrix Point Never, while 'Lagoon Leisure' lets you get lost in musique concrete space and drops. Later on 'Hurt Face' rubs static and raw electronic textures together and 'Chambers' follows it up with a sunny glow. The album finishes on the water-themed 'Let’s Go Swimming' which indulges in a slow-motion nostalgia, sending you away happy.

TRACK LISTING

01. Intro
02. Isotonic Pool
03. At Home With Mum And Dad
04. Twin Portal Redux
05. Sura-Tura-Gnosi-Cosi (Feat Steven Retchard)
06. Zang-Tumb (ft Stuart Braithwaite)
07. Glacier Mountain Descent
08. Pillars Of Creation
09. Slootering
10. Lagoon Leisure
11. Hurt Face
12. Chambers
13. Silent Reading
14. Let's Go Swimming