A very pleasant surprise is this debut cd of Techix. Techix is a one-man-project formed in 2001 by Justin Jones. The spine of the music is Jones’ skilled violin performance on every track. It’s clear that Jones has been attending an art’s institute and an orchestra, since he sounds as if he’s really mastering his instrument.
The music is in a very nice way sober, as to not distract the attention of the listener from the fine instrumentation. All twelve tracks are very moody, with soft bass-lines and touching melodic composition. Jones plays his violin sometimes fast and furious, sometimes slow and evolving; it lifts you up and down, puts you in places of drowsy twilight , of sadness and wonder.
The violin playing is sometimes supported by more electronic effects and rhythms, on track ‘Narge’ for example, which has a pleasantly nasty, whipping beat, or ‘Un dia mas’ which is combined with a reversed, accordion(?) melody. Overall the classical instrumentation is dominant. My favourite track is ‘Boklock’ which reminds me of the indie band Mogwai, which is very slow with a soul stirring melancholic feel.
The cdr is released by the American AntiClock Records, a small independent record label dedicated to ‘experimental, classical, and folk forms of music’. I didn’t hear from the label until this record, but it might be a label very well worth checking out. As for Techix: I really hope he’ll continue to follow the musical direction that he is following now. Lovers of slowcore like Low, but also fans of post-rock acts like GYBE or Dirty three will really appreciate this beautiful debut. A tip for the economically disabled: it’s just ten bucks!
