Chaos Theory

So here I was thinking about what to write. What is funny or interesting? And I remember an artist by the name of Amon Tobin. This is one of the experimental/alternative DJ’s I love and I wanted to have a go at talking about his music, especially since I’ve never written a music review or anything music-related.

So to begin with, let me paint you a picture of the eclectic artist if at all possible. Big adjectives are usually used to describe the sound and cliches like “poignant”, “dark”, “moody” are constantly thrown about as frequently as new Emo bands are signed. But there is something else to his music.
It has an ability to push beyond the boundaries of orthodoxy, paralyzes the listener and begins to consume them whole, like a snake swallowing its prey.

In some tracks you’ll find repetitive jazz phrases that entrance and confuse, while in others there are beasts growling, dripping taps or traditional Japanese instruments. All of the songs carry a sense of unease, tension or cinematic action, yet all are melodic and diverse enough that any listener with an open mind can play the music as a method of immersing themselves in another world.

Take, for example, one of my favourite albums, Chaos Theory. The soundtrack to the Xbox game Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory. It’s a fairly heavy mix of drum and bass action sequences, and cool Japanese-styled moments of calm and the stealth implied by the game. Tobin has the ability to create very full, rich instrumentation, and knows exactly how to create mood and drama specific to a genre. Listening to something like El Cargo, there’s obvious inspiration from seventies funk while mixing spy-movie classic noises, a choir backing and a heavy drum and bass beat that keeps you in the action and doesn’t let go until the final beat. Compared with a song like The Cleanup and while the drum and bass comes back, there’s an entire soundscape here that hasn’t been heard anywhere else with weaving flute and what sounds like a Japanese wind instrument.

Another of my favourite albums is Foley Room, which is almost self-explanatory. He has used regular sound effects from all over the world, as I understand it, as a means of creating unique rhythms and melodies, though not exclusively via foley. He has also employed musicians and used many traditional musical elements, the album is not noise but it walks the thin line between noise and brilliance perfectly.

The way I see it, every one of his albums reflects a very different, honest and brilliant personality, though I would say that most of them are probably deranged.