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Skoud - Systems & Drafts This promo disc must have slipped down the side of the sofa for a few months, hence the late review, but certainly deserves a few belated words of recommendation. Because there’s something that works about Skoud’s soothing beeps and beats, something that digs in under your skin, makes you unwittingly nod along – and that’s a hard thing to achieve with music as abstract and minimalist as this. On further investigation, it turns out Skoud is a handy abbreviation of Russian-born (but Swedish-based) laptop-doodler Simon Koudriavtsev, who has somehow ended up providing the debut release from Cumbrian (UK) label Emotive Sounds. Systems & Drafts is based predominately around a theme of bleepy instrumental ambience, but has some interesting detours now and then; see the Nintendo electro of “Fu”, the clipped sample weirdness of “THC”, or the lovely piano-led ender “Requiem For The Art College”. This early in his career Skoud already seems to have the balance right between the unassuming, experimental and straightforward catchiness; an achievement that deserves attention from more than just Aphex Twin and Four Tet fans. matt |
