Ovalcommers
Like any art worthy of the name, the work of Oval transcends its origins. Markus Popp, the German laptop musician and software developer who is the wizard behind Oval's digital curtain, is fond of slinging around all sorts of heavy theory about the meaning of that work. But you don't need to know how his audio (Popp prefers that term to music) is supposed to comment upon the marketplace or authorship to get a kick out ofOvalcommers. All you need is a couple of open-minded ears. The first track (of 11, all unnamed) commences with a rhythm loop reminiscent of an alarm buzzer, then erupts into a spectacular neon-hued blast of whistles and hums. Elsewhere Popp sculpts static and complexly textured tones into crunching riffs and delicate melodies, and sets them to beats fashioned from skipping CDs. It somehow makes for dense, kinetic, and undeniably rocking tunes that are as immediate and accessible as experimental electronic music ever gets.--Bill Meyer