Review of
Feast or Famine by Axis Mundi.
Hailing from the South African hub of Cape Town, UK artist Michael Martin, known as
Indidginus, has been making waves and dancefloor shakers for ever a decade. For even longer, Michael has been an avid musician and multi instrumentalist, and has made quite a name for himself across many genres and industries of music, having played alongside, and collaborated with, many respected artists, from the legends
Oood and
The Orb to
Ishq and
Eat Static. Michael has the talent, experience and drive to make his recent release,
Feast or Famine, a dancefloor booster built also to be enjoyed in more relaxed settings as well. With professionally expert mastering by Colin Bennun of OOOD notoriety, Indidginus has obviously put great amounts of effort and time into his collection of musical creations, and the result is remarkably noteworthy.
Feast or Famine, simply put, is a masterful collection of ten solidly arranged masterpieces displaying unique talent found nowhere else on Earth, which will be evidenced to the listener from the first rotation in your players ever onward.
Funky Town - Indidginus launches the listener straight into a mojo-filled, old-timey disco groove in his cleverly appealing remake of the classic anthem Funky Town. His unique take on this hit is a perspective refreshing journey into the soul of funk interpreted through the lens of 21st-century audio synthesis and digitalism.
Tau Ceti - A haunting, cybernetic zen-approaching into curtains the entryway into a realm of groove. Bass as ripe as a red apple pumps out foundations of crisp, percussive rhythm hits and eerily bobbling melody and pad arrangements. Touches of ancient tribalism collide with futuristic musical technology and innovative technique.
Tokalosh - Bouncy ethnic percussion accompanies thick, key-changing basslines at the outset, and as the sound progresses, more and more pleasing layers filter in. Soothing washes of pads and glitchy foreground rhythms wend their way about the soundscape, with a surprise twist of moods midway through.
Law of One - Indidginus picks up the pace with this nighttime full on stomper which ressurects the old school Ajuna sound with acidic innovation. Breakbeat basslines timed by four on the floor kickdrums keep the flow moving with serpentine precision. Between the percussive elements and Indian raga vocals, 'Law' imparts unmistakable feelings of sound come to life.
Lotus Eaters - This funktastic thumper serves up heaping servings of churning, warm bass, kinetic kickdrums and srisp, slapping snares. With plenty of glitchwork, melody and vocal segments, Indiginus' energy lends itself well to the uplifting buildups of positive dance vibrations which characterise this sound so well.
Surya - With 'Surya', Indidginus has crafted you a sonic transport vessel taking you to previously unknown dimensions of digital sound. Pulsating rhythm stacks atop foot tickling bass and is in turn the strata for vaulting melodies. Each arrangement opens doorways for sequentially edgier and more aggressive, piercing layers.
Substrata - Taking you to heavenly realms found seemingly within the hidden cavernous reaches below, these masterfully arranged layers of ear-tickling waveforms postulate new scientific fields of geomusicology. Panoramic percussion and bouncing leads play your senses like a violin and keep the dancefloor in motion.
Cosmic Trigger - Indidginus lays out a superbly pleasing morning rocker fueled by multicultural musical influences infused with a newly defined sound. Each layer, crisp and distinct, grips you and adds to a track that is as much a timeless journey through Earth's timeline. 'Trigger' is a masterfully synthesized six minute fusion of ancient and modern traditions.
Faerie Tale - An intro of crystalline, temporally altered glass sweeps cascades straight atop thumping bassbeats and a baseball team's worth of synth arrays which play their parts in seemingly hive-mind unison. Melodies made up of this many sorts of sounds stay fresh for many rotations, and topped with plenty of dancefloor funk make this a must-have for energy ressurecting playlists.
Gene Swarm - Indidginus' finale track to his latest and greatest album to date packs every inch of the artist's experimental intuition and knowhow until the very end. A chilled out, downtempo beat diverges away from the accepted norms of trance music and explores this artist's true sense of diversity and musical imagination and potential.
Ishq
