8 Tracks: That Communicate With Your Subconcious With Daniel Ruane

The subtle granulations of the material give the impression that the textures are constantly flowing – combined with the hypnotic repeating ‘bouncing ball’ rhythm and the enveloping rumble of the low frequencies, the listeners mind is treated to a sound stage of such depth and gloom that it resembles being stuck in a deep well, looking upwards.

This piece is a great execution of subtle development over time without losing interest– something I think achieved with creative mixing and playful stereo panning to generate the substance. The textures are also incredibly layered so you are always hearing things without realising; your mind being constantly treated with subtle repetitions and resolving harmonies.

This tune will stay with me forever. It’s one of the darkest, beatless tracks I know for its pure melancholy and murky timbre. The vocals just take the mind off to another level, despite the lack of amazing production method or technique while the occasional stab of reverberated bass mirrors that of a decaying machine trying cling to existence.

I chose this piece for the changing atmospheres throughout. The reservation of the low end gives the whole tune a weightless aesthetic, transporting the listener to an open space of immersive reverbs and echoes of distorted vocals. The sound gradually breaks from one dream space to another for the entrance of the strings and eventually the vocals, completing the 9 minute lucid experience.

With soaring synths being treated with stabbing LFOS, drenched in reverb in distortion this piece is one of my favourite ethereal sonic adventures I’ve recently come across. The repeating harmonic progression imitates the buzzing synths of an early rave scene yet captures the hypnotic sense of another world through its stylistic disassembly.

‘Life Forms’ in general is quite a subconscious trip yet I selected this tune in particular as it stands out as a break from all the alien textures and instruments that permeate throughout the rest of the album. Again the hypnosis is achieved via the repetitions of rhythms and guitar melodies eventually being absorbed by a massive wave of synthesiser. One my favourite examples of creating space with minimal instrumentation to add a varied component to a highly conceptual album of techno.

This piece, among a lot of his others, covers an immense spectrum of mental states to me, primarily the darker side of the subconscious, which is reflected very well in this deconstruction of the heavily processed metal/ doom styled source material. The sheer destructive force present in the denser sections that dissolve beautifully into spacious landscapes are a testament to his ability.

This performance is one of my favourite live improvisations of what feels to be genuine experimental music. Also the combination of techniques and immense processing skill are on another level. My favourite component is the swelling low oscillations that generate this vast, apocalyptic aesthetic. Dark, dynamic and deep.