Jega - Phlax

Ah, Phlax...

Try as I might, I cannot will myself into enjoying the so-called IDM glitch-beat phenomena. Micro edits for the sake of sparkle never appealed to me and so, I found I couldn't get into Jega back when he hit 'The Mu'.

Then I discovered his debut 12" on Skam (rather backwards, I agree).

While I find most of it unremarkable, the EP's namesake track is lodged in my head (and has been subsequently recorded to a cassette of 'essentials' that I've been toting around). Mysterious, dark and brutally effective, the sickly lead stabs are joined by lo-fi electroish beats just as the listener starts to stir with exhaustion.

Phlax (the track) is a grand testament to the raw power of minimalism.

This record could be compared to older Aphex Twin in many ways, but its a bit more refined and has more string samples. In With the In is a beautiful track comprised of a constant drum beat with a mixture of classic strings that just makes it awesome!