Meld - Stephen Hummel

Meld

Stephen Hummel

Independent/Bandcamp.

SCQ Rating: 76%

Its synths sound sharper and the vocals sound a tad more processed but, with open-armed opener “Phoenix”, Stephen Hummel’s new project bears a bizarre-o resemblance to M83. Branching off with an electro-pop compass, the man behind subtractiveLAD finds sensuous vocals and massive synthesized anthems at the heart of Meld, ones that would rightly appeal to fans of Anthony Gonzalez’s dreamy oeuvre.

This first release under his birth name marks a significant change of pace for Hummel, whose subtractiveLAD work typically eschews vocals and last left us in the expansive, industrial tizzy of Kindred. While remaining true to Hummel’s bold experimentation but fitting a pop framework, Meld leaps into an emotive world of deep percussion and sparkling synth workouts. Occasionally the song-cycle feels too heavy to digest over a single sitting, as if the multitude of layers building “Birds” and “Forever” are competing for equal attention. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this writer has discovered that Meld’s constant busyness only wears thin when played over basic computer speakers; when listened to on headphones, Hummel’s exhaustive approach pays off with a dedication to detail that most fringe-dance records would prefer to loop over.

Highlights such as “Away” and “Beautiful”, in particular, remain saturated in evolving progressions and soaring melodies but the physicality of their construction outweighs most dream-pop outings I’ve heard so far in 2012. Besides his vocal-assisted tracks, Hummel really hits his stride with ambient-leaning mood pieces like kosmische choral “Wait” and the Tycho-reminiscent “Sunshine”; both tracks the sort that’ll make longtime subtractiveLAD fans get behind this promising u-turn.

Kindred - SubtractiveLAD

Kindred

SubtractiveLAD
n5MD Records.

SCQ Rating: 71%

Following Stephen Hummel’s output as SubtractiveLAD is almost like taking a part-time job; it has a fixed presence in your life but you’re never quite sure where it’s heading. Sure, releasing seven records in seven years has allowed Hummel to passively expand upon (and in some cases refine) his emotive, electronic compositions, but each turn of his metronomic productivity has further subdued its reception. Entering into 2011, the announcement of a new SubtractiveLAD record could easily be translated as routine, representing a necessary glue to hold n5MD’s more anticipated releases in place.

As surely as its five massive songs debunk the appearance of an EP, Kindred also levels our middling expectations. Few tracks this year will shake one out of their assumptions quite like ‘The Available Light’, which opens with futuristic sweeps and distant chorals before escalating into a full-blown Kosmisch freak-out. ‘Hesperus Is Phosphorus’ takes a less bipolar approach, establishing serene atmospheres and then trespassing them with undulating Oneohtrix Point Never-styled noodling. These first two tracks, which could be EPs unto themselves, set the progressive, unwieldy tone of Kindred. The LP’s latter half finds Hummel employing the same adventurous spirit to compact arrangements (and by compact, I mean eight minutes instead of twenty-two). Nowhere is SubtractiveLAD’s peculiar direction more earnest, creepy and successful as when ‘Hello, Goodbye’ veers from its laid-back acoustics into a space-disco abyss.

These new songs operate like video-game narratives, growing from sterile repetitions to epic, arpeggio-stacked crescendos. Heady, uncompromising; SubtractiveLAD’s work has rarely afforded so many risks and rewarded so many backhanded accolades. If Kindred’s transformative fireworks lack the immediacy to grab new listeners, it should at least bolster SubtractiveLAD’s rank and reputation as one of n5MD’s most consistent mainstays.