I hardly post here but I do read just about every thread as they form and move along. After about this release a few days ago I purchased it this evening have had a blast with it.
I just want to make a few comments about who I think the artists are for some of the tracks and a suggestion of how this may have been produced.
1st I think there is a good chance that a lot of these tracks are actually collaborations between two ‘Warp’ artists or groups. For starters I kind of think Doloxan could be either a collaboration between BOC and The Black Dog or maybe that elusive BOC (The Black Dog remix) that was twitted a while back. I say this because I’ve been listening to Neither/Neither a lot since it was released and this song really has that vibe. That being said there is a true BOC feel in the beginning that lends to the possibility they were involved. However, Neither/Neither seems like it could have been influenced by Tomorrow’s Harvest so this could just be The Black Dog. Prediction 60%, The Black Dog 40% BOC (The Black Dog remix).
2nd North West Territories is a blatant copy of ROYGIBIV. So blatant that it’s either BOC (maybe early but repolished) or it’s semi-cover (Hopefully 100% BOC approved!). Another possibility is its BOC kind of playing it “live” on different instruments. It reminds me of what it would be like if a couple people had a monosynth, a drum machine/sampler and a keyboard and decided to “cover” ROYGIBIV.
60% cover no BOC involvement, 30% BOC playing “live”, 10% Early BOC track
Other reasons for collaboration
Borg_Acid160BPM= Aphex twin Syro style but with a twist
Cold Dark Field = Oneohtrix Point Never style but with a twist
I think the whole album has a similarity in sound and that it could have to do with what a previous poster mentioned about it being mixed down and then (likely) mastered by the same people.
There could be a further limitation to the production parameters allowed to the artists as well. I get the feeling that similar gear or even more likely the same software (DAW) was used to record the stems. Kind of like the At Home With The Groove Box album curated by Grand Royal. (Not sure how much the Beastie Boys were involved) That album was made by selecting artists to produce each song on a Roland MC 505 Groovebox. It’s simply a classic electronic album with songs from a wide range of artists, some unlikely, (Pardon if everyone is familiar with the album but trying to make an analogy) and Covert could be slightly similar.
I will go out on a limb and guess that it is Ableton Live and that regardless of instrument, everything was bounced or recorded to the program.
Anyone familiar with the software will likely agree that it imparts a certain flavor even if you do only minor tweaking with stem files in it. It’s another story but I would definitely argue it’s what The Black Dog used on Neither/ Neither and that parts of both Syro and Tomorrow’s Harvest passed through it at some point.
I would also guess that nearly every artist signed to Warp uses Ableton in some capacity so it’s an easy thread to sow.
It’s also then likely it was mixed with the same software.
I would like to close by saying that while I was instantly turned off by the sort of sterile sample at the beginning of Even if I lose Everything the song grew on me quick. I’ll throw up a half-court shot and say that Clark was likely involved and maybe Bibio but that’s weak.
Sorry for the long post, just really caught a bug off this album tonight!