Folie: Eyepennies
Mitek

Fuse Deadbeat's aquatic digi-dub with Jan Jelinek's textural finesse, inject with an occasional smattering of downtempo grit, and you've got a fairly good idea of Eyepennies' sound. On this fine follow-up to his 2002 debut Misspass, Folie (Scandinavian Stefan Thor) sculpts twelve tracks of immense detail while also leaving enough pockets of space for the material to breathe; the cavernous holes that pop up throughout the venomous cobra dub of “Mnogo” serve as one memorable example of many, and in the similarly minimalistic “Viskos,” thrums and whirrs coalesce into a glitchy shuffle. Folie's affinity for an intricate bottom end is indulged repeatedly too. Strangulated writhings struggle to break loose during the opening moments of “Knaprig,” for instance, but the piece impresses most for the rhythmic throwdown inflaming its second half. “Ellatre” sweetly intercuts stuttering smears with rippling clacks while “Strum” brings quivering, deep sea melodies to the surface in a manner that strongly echoes Deadbeat. Eyepennies' opium-scented dirges, sliced voice shudders, serpentine bass lines, and minimal pinprick breaks are guaranteed to captivate your resident ~scape fanatic.

October 2005