faking it.

i know i know. corny title.

but, border community artist, nathan fake's newest album hard islands has left me quite speechless.

as border community is a label that really generally does not disappoint -fake's newest release kept with the label's trend of interesting and distinct sounds. not only a departure from the comfortable and fun listener@home type of album, this album begs for listeners with an ear -and a will- for a night out. that is, it begs if you can sit down for a touch longer than half an hour (around 33 minutes to be more exact) to hear some delightfully dark beats/tunes/whistles from fake's second "mini" lp. fake has clearly changed gears a bit since his last release drowning in a sea of love, which was much prettier, lighter and playful. drowning gets played from my tunes when i need something in the category of 'play for a good time with a small-ish group of folks' -electronic lovers or otherwise.

however, hard islands is more unique, less non-electronic music lover friendly and a fantastic experiment in blips, drums, and loops (or to borrow from a friend: bleeps, bloops, and thuds). the inclusion of a little flitting (keyword) break-up in the form of 1:17 minute long "the curlew" is an interesting move due to the intense buildup formation of the following track "narrier." essentially, i'm in love with the structure, sound, and synthesis of this album from fake. i wish it was longer only for selfishly personal listening desires...the album is compact and well done as is.

personally, half an hour of fresh sounds played whilst running errands, unpacking lives, or just internet researching-out makes each of my most recent day-to-day tasks more akin to those delightful listening nights out that i'm currently missing here at home. i've been pumping hard islands at all hours for a jostle of energy, a reminisce of bygone nights, and everything else it could possibly inspire...

to check out a quick interview with nathan fake on beatportal, direct yourself here.

to listen to hard islands on juno download, direct yourself here.