released December 2006 buy: Dataspirit @ Fake Science

Dataspirit’s first release, “Timeshift EP”, is an exploration of two of my favorite electronic styles, downbeat and atmospheric drum and bass (DnB). These two seemingly different styles often blend well because they use similar sounds and compatible BPMs. To those familiar with DnB this may seem an odd juxtaposition because the average beat range for DnB sits in the 160-180 beats per minute, but when you half time the beat you are now in the 80-90 bpm range that most downbeat falls into.

Atmospheric DnB is often associated with artists such as Blame or LTJ Bukem, who took the DnB rhythm patterns, removed a lot of the darker industrial underpinnings and replaced them with jazz structures and smooth melodic ambient pads ala Brian Eno’s “Music for Airports”.

Following in this classic atmospheric structure, “Timeshift” uses long ambient pads with rhodes work integrated with very digital sounding rhythm patterns to create the definitive DnB structure. At the same time, Logan (the man behind the album) uses large spaces and half-timed beats to create the downbeat sound that works so well. The album starts out with simplistic downbeat feel that slow progresses towards the rich complexity of DnB, adding in orchestra elements and textures as the EP expands.

I first heard Logan’s sound when he entered the Monkey Love Records remix contest that we ran here at Fake Science. After further communication he sent me some of his original material and I knew this was something special and worth adding to the catalog. The EP is based on a live set that he had developed for a festival and with some modifications Logan has created an EP worth checking out and delving into.