seven

this is a debut release on inc.us (a vinyl alter ego of u-cover) by ten and tracer (a one-man project coming from colorado). jonathan canupp's music suggests soft-colored landscapes (an image enhanced by the packaging) with firm sparse percussion and dreamy, laid-back feel that (I just can't resist this comparison) could remind you of acoustic softness of boards of canada, but a bit simpler, darker and more accentuated in the rhythmic part.

what got me in this album is its slow melancholic feel, so simple and yet enveloping, not ostentatious in its purity, but genuine and "natural". there is nothing dazzling on this release, but it is an excellent collection of dreamy peaceful tracks with a darker touch.

it is interesting to see both u-cover and inc.us venturing out more and more into the realm of "american idm" (both researching and defining this term), picking out those projects that gradually become the face of both labels - minimal elegant idm with darker overtones with a touch of glitch and ambient. maybe it does take an outside "eye" to spot those artists, maybe usa really has a lot to offer as far as this genre goes; in any case, I do like the direction the label is taking, both following its "strictly limited for a free mind" paradigm (the slogan I have always supported myself), and gradually gaining more and more exposure, retaining its selectiveness and quality.