Polliwobble Fuses Organic Percussion and Fierce Synthesis in Abstertion

The combination of organic instrumentation and digital sound design is a marinade universally applicable to the many facets of electronic music, and Polliwobble has been experimenting with his own distinct production blend for over a decade. The rawness of his synthesis palate and the earthy, reverberant drum lines channel a grit and a weight that is the signature touch of his musicianship. His most recent album, Abstertion, displays a maturation of the Polliwobble production process and an exploration of industrial soundscapes and textures.

A marriage of smooth-bore melodies, pound-for-pound bass lines, and syncopated, off-kilter drum lines fills out the body of Abstertion, with bold cuts and bolder breakdowns delivering a bone rattle from track to track. The energy remains tense throughout the various compositions, ramping down only for the most subdued moments across the album. The title track, “Abstertion”, balances those polar hues in a fierce dance between bandpass filters, reesey textures, and a broken beat percussive jaunt that is both razor-edged and rhythmically juiced up. It’s a new skeleton beneath the meat of classic neuro bass, with a brackish palate all it’s own. While the majority of the album’s contents feature production-heavy tones and tool sets, the closing track, “Chirality”, is also it’s most standout; a downbeat blend of scalar relationships, subdued modes, and instrumental harmony that rivals the pocketed groove of pure jazz. It’s made all the spicier by a retro synth saunter out of frame at the concluding measures of the track, bursting with dance floor sentimentality, and capping of the album with a true white glove finale.

“Abstertion” is an both a departure from the Polliwobble works of the last several years and a logical progression of his own signature brand. It’s steel-coated, but still warm in the right places, and the heavy focus on organic drum tones gives the album a distinct approach to hybridized bass music. With a clear pattern of multiple releases across relatively short time spans, it makes us all the more curious to hear how the Polliwobble project with continue to shape and develop its musical machinations.

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