2 out of 5

Label: Analogical Force

Produced by: Julien Chastagnol

If I can too effectively describe an electro release solely with Aphex Twin references… then I’m likely to judge it harshly. And on the one hand, I do hate being that dismissive, as it plays a game that suggests that music can never best whatever example we hold to be its main influence, but on the other hand, I have plenty of examples that iterate and evolve on these influences, so when something mimics them too closely, I get restless, and start spouting old man stuff like “it sounded better when so-and-so did it.”

Which is a very rude intro to Ruby My Dear’s Phlegm, especially considering how initially taken I was by touching combination of emotive keys and IDM breaks on opener Dédaism, and how admittedly impressive the blending of those elements – the melodic and the chaotic – is done across its five tracks. RMD’s mastery of this particular Come To Daddy / Windowlicker-era glitch style is undeniable, but as complex as that can be to piece together, there comes a particular point in Dédaism when I realize the artist is prioritizing a particular flashiness over substance, and that makes the emotional underpinnings crumble. It is then too clearly a combination of exactly those things – notes that are meant to evoke “sweeping” and “powerful” feelings; and the IDM stutter that sounded cool the first time we started hearing it back in the 90s. And then I start hearing swipes instead of songs.

Again, this is too harsh. It’s been 30 years or so since some of those releases; artists making this music are perhaps younger than that, and I’m discounting how they arrive at it with different ears. Because of my nostalgia bias, instead of being inspired by the stuff, I’m distracted, and likely missing nuance. From that, it makes sense that the best tracks on here are the ones that stray from the above-mentioned template, such as Babik (Alternate Take), which is mostly a badass, club-thumping jam… until RMD whips out the Come To Daddy glitch once more, or closer Jit Thin doing a more downtempo, chill take that foregoes the build and release shtick for a slow ebb of distorted keys and beats – the most consistent, solid, and original track on the EP.