M.E.S.H is something of an oddball in the world of underground music. After an initial release on Dyssembler in 2012, he begun a three year relationship with the titans of all things experimental PAN beginning with absolutely incredible Scythians EP, itself a strange mash-up of Avant-Garde experimentalism, IDM and Grime. Each release following has seen their sound morph massively - each EP an album so unique that it's almost like a fundamental sonic reinvention.


Hesaitix continues that trend in fine style. Where EPs like Scythians could be compared more to the works of artists like Visionist, Hesaitix occupies a space veering into the territory of Batu and Lurka - their approach to sound design and rhythm are eerily similar, and the results as beguiling. Like Lee Gamble, M.E.S.H seems to feed off of musical styles like a ravenous hydra, sucking in and breathing new life into a vast range of contemporary styles, with techno being the broad (and we mean very broad) anchor to it all.

Hesaitix is - perhaps more than any of M.E.S.H's work - a wonderful balance between exploration and experimentalism and accessibility and dancefloor functionality. The clips below are a perfect demonstration - they rest right on the edge of uncanny, sounding familiar but with an intangible twist that marks the sound of an artist building their own sound-world from the ground up. So few producers fall into this unutterably unique category, but M.E.S.H iso one of the chosen few. 2 Loop Trip steps with a deceptively complex sequence of rhythmic sequences which are bolstered by a superb approach to spatial placement - thin layers of laser-esque synths and rim-shots bounce gracefully across the stereo field and provide a wonderful sense of liveness which is almost at odds with the monolthic kick-and-bass groove that underpins it all. We could go on describing the tune for ages - there's so much to unpack discussing each would be an entire essay in their own right.

Another unifying factor is maximalism. These tracks are so multi-layered that each moment bursts with its own unique colour. It might be a bit much for some - but this is where the relatively accessible and hugely danceable rhythms come in. As with 2 Loop Trip, Coercer controls its experimental urges with massive low-end grooves, stepping with the deftness of Livity but deployed utterly originally in the broader context.

Overall, We can't really fault this LP. It floored us first time we heard it, and still does on every repeat listen. An absolute must buy.

2 Loop Trip

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Coercer

Diana Triplex