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Planet Mu Records

  • Konx-om-Pax 'Caramel' - Cargo Records UK

    Planet Mu Records

    Konx-om-Pax 'Caramel'

    £10.99

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    Planet Mu Records

    Konx-om-Pax 'Caramel'

    £10.99

    Tom Konx-om-Pax'Scholefield's Caramel is quite a different record from the dark, mould-pocked ambience of his debut Regional Surrealism'. Although it's primarily a beatless album, it's one with a big smile on it's face.Scholefield started making Caramel'after his last record in 2012, 'My surroundings have a direct influence on the mood of what I make.

    I made Regional Surrealism when I was living in a big empty flat on my own in Glasgow town centre surrounded by concrete and junkies. Moving next to the park, closer to friends and getting to tour the world had a positive effect on the feel of the tracks.' Caramel'has a lightness and energy, an unrepentant joyful cheesiness even - like the rave piano and spiralling arpeggios of Cosmic Trigger'or the big beatless build up of the title track.

    'A lot of the tracks are very simple, that's quite an important theme.' He adds 'I remember the Human League talk about how you can play their songs using only a couple of fingers on the synth, or Boards Of Canada saying its important to be able to hum their melodies really easily.' There's also a strong element of rave memory in this ambience.

    It's influenced in some ways by touring the world with Lone doing visuals and DJing, but also from simply listening to old rave tapes and taking in the warmth and energy. As he says 'Some of the tracks are like photocopies of photocopies of rave tracks, where the drums have dissolved and its just the melodies that have survived.' You can hear this distinctly on Perc Rave'.

    Other tracks are more or less drones that build into melodies, like Beatrice's Visit', as he says 'I'm always trying to find the most ecstatic and basic loop and just let it run and do it's thing. I heard a funny story about Basic Channel popping out to get a kebab and letting their machines run while they were out.'

    Other tracks approach the pastoral melodies of prime nineties IDM such as At The Lake'and Rainbow Bounce'which almost seem like a homage to Planet Mu's Mike Paradinas at his most beatific. Dive in.

    LP Tracklisting:
    Side A:
    1. Video Club
    2. Perc Rave
    3. Last Jam Forever
    4. Manhunter
    5. Oren's Theme
    6. Frozen Border
    7. Mega Glacial

    Side B:
    1. Caramel
    2. Radiance
    3. Beatrice's Visit
    4. Stay
    5. Cosmic Trigger
    6. At The Lake
    7. Rainbow Bounce

    CD Tracklisting:
    1. Video Club
    2. Perc Rave
    3. Last Jam Forever
    4. Manhunter
    5. Oren's Theme
    6. Frozen Border
    7. Mega Glacial
    8. Caramel
    9. Radiance
    10. Beatrice's Visit
    11. Stay
    12. Cosmic Trigger
    13. At The Lake
    14. Rainbow Bounce
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  • Konx-Om-Pax 'Regional Surrealism' - Cargo Records UK

    Planet Mu Records

    Konx-Om-Pax 'Regional Surrealism'

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    Planet Mu Records

    Konx-Om-Pax 'Regional Surrealism'

    £16.99

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    You might be familiar with Konx-om-Pax previous work without already being aware of it. His real name is Tom Scholefield, he's from Glasgow and as a 3D film director and graphic artist he's made videos for locals Hudson Mohawke and Mogwai as well as Martyn, Jamie Lidell, Kuedo and Lone, sleeve artwork for Oneohtrix Point Never, Rustie, King Midas Sound and others plus he has toured with Mogwai as a DJ.

    So how on earth does he find the time to make music, or the energy?

    Tom explains that he makes music to chill out, a form of creative self medication. In contrast to his bright, synthetic and colourful artwork and videos, his music is more mossy and analogue. Often beatless, personal and located in a transporting surrealism, it's sometimes inspired by the idea of rescoring films and TV. 'Glacier Mountain Descent' for instance is a reimagining of the start of Werner Herzog's 'Aguirre'. Other times they're inspired by nostalgia for childhood feelings; watery immersion is a running theme and a sense of Scottish surrealism is another.

    Tom started out making tracks as a teen, copying the synth lines he'd heard on prog house CDs, before graduating to a deep fascination with Jeff Mills and Drexciya's hermetic imagery and alien funk after hearing them on John Peel's show. This led him to creating lo-fi techno, then DJing and promoting events at artschool, which developed his knowledge, driving him to formulate an aesthetic of unpolished, textured and emotive music.

    'Regional Surrealism' works largely like a film. Vignettes like 'Isotonic Pool' transition into larger more dramatic pieces like the deep 'At Home With Mum and Dad' which takes an early Aphex sounding ambient track and fills it with odd drama. 'Sura-Tura-Gnosi-Cosi' featuring mysterious US artist Steven Retchard is full of tape-hiss and unsettling spoken word, while 'Zang-Tumb' with guitar played by Mogwai's Stuart Braithwaite works in bruised and twisted Ash-Ra Tempel territory. Elsewhere 'Slootering' finds a sweet spot between Drexciya and Oneohtrix Point Never, while 'Lagoon Leisure' lets you get lost in musique concrete space and drops. Later on 'Hurt Face' rubs static and raw electronic textures together and 'Chambers' follows it up with a sunny glow. The album finishes on the water-themed 'Let's Go Swimming' which indulges in a slow-motion nostalgia, sending you away happy.

    Side A:
    1. Intro
    2. Isotonic Pool
    3. At Home With Mum And Dad
    4. Twin Portal Redux
    5. Sura-Tura-Gnosi-Cosi
    6. Zang-Tumb
    7. Glacier Mountain Descent
    Side B:
    8. Pillars Of Creation
    9. Slootering
    10. Lagoon Leisure
    11. Hurt Face
    12. Chambers
    13. Silent Reading
    14. Let's Go Swimming
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