Sibel Koçer lives one and a half musical lives. On the one hand, she is a modular synthesis nerd of the classic variety, and on the other, a Berghain resident. These two facets don’t contradict each other, but mesh productively. And yet her releases under the name JakoJako sometimes go more in one direction, sometimes more in the other. Her solo debut album »Metamorphose« drew on the sound of cosmic Krautrock last year without ever putting on too much patchouli or being overly nostalgic. Not only her collaboration Rødhåd, released the same year, but also the new EP »Verve,« however, underline her background in dance music. In a sense, she walks few metres through Berlin-Kreuzberg from SchneidersLaden to Hard Wax, i.e. from textural and swirling synth excursions to the stricter formulas of Berlin techno in general and Basic Channel or Chain Reaction in particular. In the course of these four tracks, the producer also traces this blueprint freehand instead of simply copying it. Koçer approaches the transcendental might of dub techno by putting an emphasis on the interplay of discrete elements rather than working with foggy chords. »Impetus« is actually a peak-time banger, but of immense depth. There is a lot happening at all times, but everything stringently blends into a holistic whole. »Opak« is less trancey and focuses more on textures and arrangement—yet another compromise between Koçer’s one and a half musical lives. »Auris,« already released in advance, is simply one of the most beautiful dub techno tracks of this century: plodding, focused on unfolding very slowly and seemingly more and more of the same, yet constantly changing. It’s a tune that stretches time. The much more aggressive »Nexus« comes as a surprise with its industrial-like sounds, but is just as reminiscent of Porter Ricks’ more abrasive moments. It concludes an EP for which JakoJako largely focuses on one side of her creative output and yet demonstrates her impressive versatility. An early highlight of the year.
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Verve EP
