Fortunately, there are now definitive answers to these venerable riddles on, of all places, the back of Marumari's third full-length, The Wolves' Hollow . In the distance, more spacewolves run from the green pasture toward their ship, which beams sonic waves to the heavens. The record opens with whistling samples distorted and decelerated to sound like howling wolves. After these few seconds of forested mood-setting, vocal clips establish a warm, dreamy melody as shuffling, muted percussion fades in. Gradually, crisper drum samples rise to the surface while thick low-end beats bubble underneath.
Unidentifiable effects orbit the melodic framework.
Flanged buzzes jet from right channel to left. But for electronic music, this sound is strangely organic. Though Marumari's closest brethren may be the Boards of Canada, The Wolves' Hollow also borrows liberally from IDM, especially in its sometimes clicky rhythms and vaguely human textures. However, the noodly knob-twisting is tempered by understated musical backdrops which introduce a subtle pop accessibility. The record also lacks the arty pretension inherent in much of the IDM scene, settling instead for a charming naivete that could only come from a young upstate New York computer guy.