Potential
The Range is a digital archaeologist, unearthing deep musical emotion from the obscure sounds he digs up on YouTube. For *Potential*, the Brooklyn producer searched for voices in particular, incorporating them into his alternately lush and dank masses of beats and bass. Anonymous singsong flits ethereally through “Florida,” which skips and struts over thick kicks accessorized with clipped steel-drum ping and banjo pluck. Others, like “1804,” revolve around rapping or toasting by unknown MCs whose words cut a path through nostalgic yet novel combinations of jungle, dubstep, grime, and ambient music.
James Hinton, the Brooklyn-based producer who records as The Range, doesn't do anything new, but his music crackles with the air of discovery. Potential recalls the optimistic rave moment when the right combination of people and the right DJ could make you feel like you were part of something that mattered.
James Hinton a.k.a. The Range scours YouTube in the search for answers.
In an era when electronic musicians are crafting highly involved concept albums made from samples, music or just texture, James Hinton (aka...