The 50th release by the ever-dependable Chicago-based IDM label comes in the form of an impressive glitch-techno collaboration between two Dutch producers.
Tapage is Tijs Ham while Meander is Conrad Hoyer (aka Ophidian); solo artists who have each released hardcore pieces in the past.
For this release, however, the beats are tempered by a distinctly organic quality with the positively serene opening track, California Blue, making clear that they are not out merely to bombard the listener with some techno charged overkill.
Yet while the gentle ambient mood of this track and Abyssal Plain work beautifully, the pair haven't gone all new age on us and this is far being a low key meditative work.
The squelchy drum-beats of Tolepea or Hydrostatic Skeleton are certainly not designed with tranquil reflections in mind.
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This life aquatic theme suggested by the album title is carried through with a great cover shot of a Deep Sea Diver looking like an alien and a photo of jelly fish on the inner sleeve. There are also titles like The Tide, Plankton and Oceanographic but it's a bit of long shot to expect listeners to imagine these synthetic sounds as a soundtrack to some Jacques Costeau style documentary.
At the same time, it doesn't hurt to think of these carefully structured tunes in terms of the ebb and flow of the ocean or to lie back and enjoy what the press release calls the"steady waves of beat-driven melodies".
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