It’s remarkable to think that, so early on in his career, Nicolas Jaar has really managed to nail a sound as his own. Fans of his previous work will easily recognise the rhythms, atmospheric build-ups and manipulation of vocals that has made him the premier minimalist of the moment. But for this project, he’s teamed up with guitarist Dave Harrington.
This is an easy marriage of sound, as Jaar’s productions sound about as organic as anything in electronic music right now. The duo have taken an unusual approach of ignoring the need for song names, simply labelling their tracks “A1”, “A2” and “A3”. Quite frankly, the mood and the general sound of the EP undergoes barely any change, making it feel more like one fifteen-minute song.
“A1” features the subtle-yet-profound progression to a deeper state which Jaar is known for, as well as an interesting vocal in which it sounds like both artists are singing. One delivers in a low voice (or is maybe pitched down) while the other sings in a falsetto; or maybe the same vocal has been pitched in different ways then combined? Whatever the way, it adds a bit of eeriness to the bluesy proceedings.
And while the rest of the EP carries on in a similar vein (albeit with less vocals), there are nice little touches. “A2” has a charming Hispanic feel to it; no doubt people will jump on Jaar’s Chilean heritage as a source, but Harrington’s exquisite guitar work is the real delight here.
“A3”, on the other hand, does contain evidence of Jaar’s influences, namely the infectious techno groove which cheekily works its way in to a really deep-sounding track. And to top off something which sounds so deliberate is lovely bit of post-punkish guitar flair from Harrington, his strings echoing into the end of a truly wondrous helping of electronica.
This EP was released by Clown & Sunset in 2011 and is available from the label's website.
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