“Electronica beats struggling in a dense tapestry of ill-assorted noises and percussive effects, Ligand has all the power to pleased those who seeks for a good psybient feast”
1 Innermost Structure 5:36 2 Outermost Structure 8:44 3 Parabolic View 4:37 4 Variegation 6:52 5 Harmonices Mundi 8:21 6 Methodical Random 9:07 7 Ligand 7:04 8 Trochilidae 6:48 9 Parallel Thoughts 5:26 10 Kepler's Laws 7:22 11 Dendrictic Ice 6:41 Ultimae Records | Inre092 (CD/DDL 76:42) (V.F.) (Psybeats & Psybient)
A distant shadow whistling like a hollow breeze, hoops which spread layers of echoes, bubbles of white noises which burst and a cadaveric pulsation of a bass which tries to create a rhythm; Innermost Structure dips us back into this universe of soft rhythms and surrealist ambiences which had structured the main part of the last studio album from Martin Nonstatic, Granite released on the Lyonnais label Ultimae Records in 2015. And contrary to his nom de plume, Martin van Rossum proposes on LIGAND another universe where the stasis of elements and of the white noises saturate structures where the rhythms try to hatch out from these embryos frozen in the oblivion. And Innermost Structure sets the tone with a movement of rhythm which pounds without exploding in a decoration where those white noises, some floating synth layers, nice percussive effects and the eternal reverberations oblige the new born rhythm to dance with its harmonious reflects. Built upon a mosaic which flirts with the 80 minutes, the music of LIGAND is stigmatized with a fascinating paternity between each title. Outermost Structure seizes of finale of Innermost Structure for finally proposed a good mid-tempo splendidly decorated with percussive effects besides the usual Martin Nonstatic's sound fauna. It makes a title inspired and inspiring for these dances of Zombies gassed with ether. Effects of voices, layers of waters which crash between our ears, resounding sound arcs and an evasive melody add to the impressive sound flora of this album the elements of charms which give some more of depth to the very stylized psybient model of Martin van Rossum. Parabolic View is more in mode waiting and ambient, even with a harmonious structure raised on good impulses of sequences. Between rhythms and atmospheric variations, Variegation does rather futuristic. The setting is adorned of the reverberating effects from the bass line and good percussions metallized of sonic honey. A suspended drizzle cheers up the vibes with explosions of sizzling bubbles in this short title which offers after all some nice bumpy phases of rhythms.
Harmonices Mundi is my real first crush in this LIGAND. After a rather long introduction of ambiospherical extraterrestrial elements, a good structure of harmonious sequences draws a spheroidal approach on which get grafted a nice fluty shadow. The strong presence of this beast with a bass draws its reverberating effects while the scenery of ambient elements gets out from a sonic horn of plenty in order to feast around this so harmonious and danceable rhythm. We enter in the 2nd phase of this Martin Nonstatic's last album with Methodical Random and the title-track. Two tracks which blow incomplete rhythms in always phantasmagorical moods, where absent voices and organic effects always enrich the DNA of LIGAND. Trochilidae is another catchy piece of music which proposes a nice down-tempo which is haloed of melancholy. A melancholy twisted by a piano as evanescent as tenderly poignant. The music is interrupted as much as the phases of rhythms. And here, it's a good spiral movement of the sequencer which connects ambiences and down-tempo. The bass pulsations, as it's all over the 80 minutes of this album, throws a resonance effect into our spinal bones and makes vibrate our soul. In this album where each title inhales the perfumes of the last one, Martin Nonstatic succeeded to amaze with new elements. As in Parallel Thoughts and its guitar riffs which appear from nowhere to make turn pale, although it's only for a short moment, the impressive sound fauna here. Always between brief phases of rhythms and these dense sound magmas blown by a mortuary bass, Kepler's Laws succeeds to wake up our waits with a strong layer of a vampiric bass which roams over a growing rhythm aborted in a high wall of ambiences. And Dendrictic Ice ends this last odyssey started in the imagination of Martin van Rossum with more strength and din in the phases of rhythm which rather seem to make laugh a layer of mocking bass.
In a sound decoration simply galvanizing for the ears never full of sound delights, LIGAND hits the jackpot! On the other hand, the constant struggling of the structures of rhythms and the amplification of the atmospheric phases will ask for some listening before really appreciate the complexity of this last Martin Nonstatic's album. And when it's done, we are entitled to hope for some very big things from this artist among whom the curiosity and the sound research should inevitably be transformed into works as much impressive as the biggest albums of this label of which the sound and the artistic aestheticism meet brilliantly the challenges that it's impose to itself. Sylvain Lupari (December 13th, 2017) ***½**
Available at Ultimae Records Bandcamp