A Lot on My Crate

An electronic artist hailing from Sweden, Mattias Östling who goes under the moniker of Rolando Simmons, has caught my ears when entering the mystifying world of IDM. And in this subgenre being so broad and boundary pushing, the cerebral experience he provides here in Animatronics is such a treat for any voyeurs in experimental electronic music. Östling stated that he was dealing with a creative writer’s block and then something hit him. A surreal vision came to him in form of a world that has materialized in his mind in hopes would transcribe in this concept album. His success in its conceptualization is up to you to judge, but regardless if his objective has panned out, the audio experience provided here is nevertheless, fulfilling ear candy. It is especially a good listen for me, but I may be biased since IDM is one of, if not, my favorite genre of music. Despite it being my favorite genre, it is such a tough medium to describe since IDM is again, so broad and yet, amorphous. But we must press on, as there are many layers and textures to describe in this record.

“Cloudless Passenger” transports us into Animatronic’s world with this calm ambient sound and a voice going through this vocoder filter. It’s a peaceful yet mysterious feeling and the mood continues as these drum loops pass on by. We get an atmospheric change on the LP with the second track, “Purple Soap”. It’s playful acid that makes this track probably the most upbeat of the entire album. It makes me think of a functioning futuristic society or an assembly line producing the shiniest technology and all the cogs are in place. In the next piece, “Eternal Plastic Foundation” was an enjoyable listen for me, since it draws so much Autechre inspiration. It’s somber and alien with this hollow lurking bass along next to these synth leads that sound like a desolate place of worship. “Retinal Caustics” has faint ghost vocals along with these simple minimalist drum patterns and breaks and yet it grows into something gorgeous in the end. These tracks have been giving that enigmatic vibe and “Procedural Cosmetics” is no exception however a highlight for me is “White Lace Throne” afterwards. This piece had these delicate string-like soundscapes that compliments these grandiose kicks and synths. It’s epic yet celestial at the same time, that can be pulled off only by someone who is really meticulous in their craft. But what a change as we get plucked out of our comfort zone with “GlobalGroove Dust Club” as this is the most acid oriented track of the with engaging break beats, but the acid synths just revs up and discombobulates the mind. Makes the track go by so fast with a plethora of ways from Östling’s pocket to manipulate the space in this room. And last but not least, because this was probably my favorite track as “Memory Defrost” was such a banger of a closer. It’s like a club, techno, and march for robots that’s so laid back, it puts you into a trance. The chill kicks, the stuttering drum machine patterns, ghostly vocals and synths all lead to a great closer on our last glimpse of Roland’s world as we get lifted out.

A lot of engaging sounds to ease your mind to in this LP, but there are a few exceptions. Some of the tracks drag on for me or too similar to each other. Biggest issue of this LP to me was “Procedural Cosmetics” although the instrumentation was layered really well. It was too similar to other tracks and kind of dragged on a bit for me.

On the album’s Bandcamp page, Östling shares that his thought process and visual direction steered into making this album that is a futuristic, absurdist shopping mall in a dream-like dystopia. It’s a sonic discussion on teddy bears (per album cover) and technology. The execution of this dream is understandably debatable, however you cannot argue this ambient, acid, techno, IDM album does put you in a dream-like fugue state. What a marvelous surreal experience Roland Simmons has provided this window of this enigmatic world. Thankfully this dystopia has open borders.

FAVORITE TRACKS: PURPLE SOAP, ETERNAL PLASTIC FOUNDATION, WHITE LACE THEME, GLOBALGROOVE DUST CLUB, MEMORY DEFROST

LEAST FAVORITE: PROCEDURAL COSMETICS

You can purchase this album on Bandcamp and their discography is also available for streaming.

https://rolandosimmons.bandcamp.com/album/animatronics