Kyle Geiger - Cubera - Groove

Techno prince, Kyle Geiger, returns with a three track EP on his own Cubera imprint, “Groove.” Dark techno fans are sure to embrace “Groove” with open ears as the heavy, reverbed drums beat away at an all too familiar topic.

The first track, “Renewed Hope” opens with a solid groove between the bass and kick that acts as the foundation of the track and largely continues for its duration. Subtle synth sounds creep into the arrangement and add a sense of light and optimism while a modulating soundscape keeps the track moving forward and introduces the dynamic breakdown. The breakdown is hectic and tense, with a few simple chords guiding the movement before the drop.

The EP’s title track, “Groove,” is the most rhythmic of the three and nicely blends simple percussive rhythms with a highly effected vocal sample. The track is techno at its purest with “the machines” grinding and hammering together to create a frenzied industrial soundscape.

“In the Valley” seemed to be the most interesting track on the EP. From the start, the track had a ton of attitude – the panned and “LFO’ed” bottom end sucked the listener deeper and deeper into Geiger’s techno “valley.” Classic production techniques such as modulating the filter cutoff never seem to get old as this track had me hooked from beginning to end.

The dark techno genre, as most other electronic music sub-genres, have been imitated, replicated and all but beaten to pulp in the last few years. It takes a true innovator  o continue to evolve and progress a familiar sound forward. Kyle Geiger, through his releases on such behemoths as CLR, Droid and Soma has shown that he has what it takes to play in the elite of the techno genre, and if one has any doubts about that statement, try dropping “In the Valley” at 4am and see what happens!

Review for CGNY by Leunich