The Inheritors
In 2006, the first album by this British electronic producer found him exploring the outer reaches of trance, glitch, and minimal techno. Seven years later, having busied himself elsewhere in between, Holden followed up with an ecstatic explosion of sounds and styles on *The Inheritors*. The electronic merry-go-round that Holden presides over is based around thick, visceral analog synth tones that alternately throb, rattle, and wheeze as the situation demands, but they\'re framed in a multitude of mind-melting ways. On \"The Caterpillar\'s Invention,\" avant-jazz sax frenzy collides with a tribal groove and a prog-flavored accumulation of electronics. \"Sky Burial\" pits electro-acoustic edginess against old-school Harry Partch–style DIY clang-and-bang sound sculpture. Along the way, \'70s Berlin–style cosmic synthscapes dart around funhouse-mirror reflections of everything from ambient music and post-rock to videogame soundtracks—making for a sometimes disorienting but consistently engrossing journey.
The UK producer's second album combines the open-field psychedelia of Cluster and Popul Vuh with a healthy amount of Boards of Canada's dusty gaze, oscillating between buzzy pastoral beauty and harsh rhythmic duress.
The ever dependable Devonian's latest is an attempt to make an album as far removed from popular music circa 2013 as possible – in other words, an honest electronic record
Having previously pushed the boundaries of techno on his 2006 debut, James Holden's long-awaited sophomore album delves even deeper into the rhythmic roots of the genre, employing guitars, live percussion, a host of analogue synths and some involving studio trickery to create a statement on dance music which acknowledges the roots of the form while pushing fearlessly on into new territory
A much-anticipated release, this sophomore album from James Holden arrives a staggering seven years after his lauded debut, The Idiots Are Winning.
Clash reviews 'The Inheritors', the great new album from Border Community's James Holden
James Holden's latest release combines analogue tinkering and pagan repetition to winning effect, writes <strong>Kitty Empire</strong>