At one point while listening to Anadol’s latest LP, I became overwhelmed with the sensation of descent. At 15 minutes, the fourth track of Felicita seems intentionally sequenced as the arrhythmic heart of the record. It dives deep into unfamiliar waters. Restless synth blips, bloops, and clacks give way to some sort of a hiss and an isolated saxophone segment which transforms and mutates loudly through a filter of electronic effects, becoming something unknowable and menacing as it pulls the listener downward until they’re surrounded by submarine pockets of kaleidoscopic sound. There is a bell, a heartbeat, a train, something scratching, something breathing, something screaming. It’s a provocative mix which rewards an attentive headphone listen. The track unexpectedly gathers its balance toward the latter half and becomes something resembling more of a “song” song, though one remaining far removed from any obvious pop conventions. The piece serves well as a 15 minute sampler of the sense of freedom and lawlessness Anadol’s music alchemizes into miraculous order—a place where the chaos somehow makes sense and feels authentic, inspired, and beautiful.
Per the album’s press release, authenticity—or more specifically, the concept of “authentic exploration”—is the preoccupation of Felicita. Right from the opening track, with a flutelike synth playing over a backdrop of chirping birds, there’s a feeling of stepping off the trail. The melody wanders for a couple minutes before settling, an engine starts, and then we’re thrust into a world that refuses to hold still. It’s exhilarating. | t lewis
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