Brothomstates
Claro
Warp
Brothomstates is a 23-year-old Finnish guy named Lassi Nikko. He really likes computers, and he really likes to make music on those computers. I have no problem with any of these things.
And I don’t really have a problem with Claro, his first full-length album on Warp. It’s a whispery sort of IDM album that occasionally breaks into actually having a beat. One could almost actually dance to “Te Noch Rp,” the seventh track on the album. But that’s about it as far as booty-shaking action here. Songs like “25101999” and the squelchoriffic “Detektiv Plok” are what I imagine Dexter listens to in his laboratory before Dee Dee comes down and starts wrecking shit.
Lassi Nikko has a lot of talent, and not a half-bad way with a robot melody. I’m especially digging “MDRMX” and the floaty eight-minute closer “Vilmo.” Hardly anything here reaches out, grabs you by the underwear, and gives you the wedgie of greatness, but that’s not the point, I guess. It’s apparently more about creating sweet little noises together to make sweet little soundscapes.
There’s only one problem here: the whole damned thing sounds like other Warp artists. Track two is titled “Brothomstates Ipxen,” but it should be called “Squarepusher rIPOfF” – even if you get those BPMs up to 489, Lassi, it’s still derivative. And good lord, there are a lot of Autechre boosts all over the place. I’m not sure whether Tri Repetae + + or Confield is played more often on the Brothomstates CD player, but I bet it’s a tie. The Warp press release also mentions this disc’s similarity to Boards Of Canada, but I ain’t hearin’ it – all I’m getting is Booth & Brown and Jenkinson, ambient glitchcore d n’ b clicktrack bleeprock, shuffle and repeat.
I think Lassi Nikko could be a great techno artist, and I think his first disc is pretty freakin’ accomplished. But so far what Brothomstates is really good at is ripping off his labelmates. If you like Autechre and Squarepusher – which I do – you’ll like Claro. If you value originality, though, better take another listen to the originals and wait for Lassi’s album number two.
Warp Records: http://www.warprecords.com
