Sagittariuns are known for their wide-open and curious nature. Well that describes pretty neatly what’s going on here, because this is a debut album – released on the first day of the Sagittarius sign – that works its way through a huge variety of styles, like listening to the work of several different people at times. That is either an indication that this particular producer (whose identity is so far unknown) is very versatile, or that he can’t decide which style is best for him. On hearing the album several times I’d definitely go for the first option, because despite the different speeds, moods and drum beats this is an extremely coherent and accomplished piece of work. ‘Sundial’ floats in on warm synthesizers, but by the time we get to ‘V4641 Sgr’ acidic textures are in play, and then ‘Conquering Lions’ gets to work playing out cross rhythms with a ravey break beat. By contrast to these ‘The South Node’ is an excellent techno workout, the drum beat for ‘The Age Of Sin’ seems to be imported from the late 1980s, while ‘Seven Locks (in Dub)’ is dub heavy. As you can guess, there is rarely a dull moment on here – so if A Sagittariun might still be searching for an identity, he has plenty from which to choose!
4 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
