Kletis – Orphic
(Secuencias Temporales, 2022-02-07)
Experimentation, though a brave step, is a move into vulnerability. It is shedding constraints and perhaps ways of doing it in a search for alternatives which are potentially leading to growth.
Kletis’ debut release on the Mexican label Secuencias Temporales surely gives the impression of a step outside of his comfort zone. The Czech artist is known for his deep dark drum’n’bass and breakbeat, such as in his 2020 album “Black Rainbow“, and seems to have operated a transition since his 2021 EP “Midnight Nectar“, with a deeper dive in “Orphic”, matching well with Secuencias Temporales‘s deep sound signature. If the contrast of genre would be assumed in comparison to his previous releases, the quality of production remains consistent, systematically built with strong execution.
The spacey atmospheres shine through in Orphic. Tracks vary between more ambient to driving groove-oriented characteristics. Additionally, industrial sounds are transformed through eclectic sound design which unifies, while offering a window into the artist’s lived experience, at the northern borders of the Czech Republic, in the forest “where it’s always raining”. Kletis, a man on a mission, provides a new take on Sudetenland sound, a new journey for listeners to explore spaces through the sonic landscapes induced by his productions.
“Maffei” and “Európa” introduce the vast forest of sounds, with creature-like elements at times swaying peculiarly from organic to drone layers. Similarly, barren noise is given the characteristic of shimmering rain. Cold, metallic clinking and clanking are rounded into a full-bodied, warm meditative chime, as heard in “Orphic” and “Solstice”. In the closing track “Brdo”, a welcoming, pulsating kick and a movement-inducing bassline echo the elements developed in the previous tracks. A groove pushes through, grounding the more fantastical sounds with just the right balance.
The symptoms of attempting, successfully, to experiment, might be the feeling of enrichment. Through labels such as Secuencias Temporales, we may continue to live enriched journeys with access to spaces through sounds that would have otherwise been left unheard. For those dubious to step into the vulnerability of experimentation, this may surely breathe a wave of encouragement.
WRITING BY: TINA CAMILLERI | 14 FEBRUARY 2022
