“Nexus feels like a first attempt by an artist who seems to have so much to say”
Nexus 34:06
(DDL 34:06) (V.F.)
(Vintage EM)
Hashtronaut is the project of the English guitarist Michael Daniel who is strongly inspired by the world of electronic music (EM) of the Berlin School style. NEXUS is a mini-CD-R that appeared on his website around 2003. It was also available as a 320 KB download only. It's a long minimalist and experimental piece with very pronounced visions of the golden years of the Berlin School with a cross between the soporific ambiences of Klaus Schulze, Adelbert Von Deyen and Neuronium.
A soft hollow breeze struggles to move forward in a universe filled with remnants of an EM in the colors of Cosmos. A synth wave covers the movement of Nexus with a tone that sounds like the crinkling of metallic insect wings unfolding by jolts. The sound is very old-fashioned, like in the first recordings of the time. Deafening knocks refuse to let us fall into the arms of Morpheus, while the mellotron insists with floating layers filled with organ ether and reminiscent of the morphic introductions of early Neuronium albums. An organ layer tries to raise the level of the ambiences constantly disturbed by these knocks of which the metallic crumplings which emerge from it sounds like big doors which close. This layer of organ weighs down these ambiences which meet a strange movement of static rhythm embodied by what sounds like riffs without being of it. This rhythm built on these false riffs with a vitality which brings us closer to the era of Disco is constantly smothered by layers of cosmic fog up until the 16th minute. One discerns then a little better these pulsations which alternate sharply under a psychedelic setting, and thereafter without this setting. There are no percussions, nor other jumping balls. Always, this tireless sequence that feeds the structure and that seconds the multiple sound effects of the synth. The organ layer comes back to throw a little anesthetic haze on this sequenced movement that gradually fades its vitality, allowing Nexus to complete its loop in order to return to its point of origin.
NEXUS feels like a first attempt by an artist who seems to have so much to say. This movement, which is close to 35 minutes, suggests a pronounced use of mellotron, and psychedelic effects from the vintage years. One can find this track lost in the limbo of the Net by using one's imagination...like contacting its author 😊
Sylvain Lupari (August 15th, 2006) *****
We inform ourselves at Hashtronaut Bandcamp