Vakula's music has been on my radar for a couple of years, in which time his output has been fairly well relentless, 2011 saw him release 11 EPs through 7 different labels (albeit with the interconnected links pretty common in electronic music's micro-scene setup) and last year saw a similarly packed schedule of pressings from a host of different places.
It has to be said that without actually listening to anything he has released there is a pretty distinct aura to the guy as a music producer, the implied logic says that this music will take an outsider view on western electronic sounds, throwing in a Slavic element to dancefloor house. Everything seems to fit, including references to Ukrainian poet Lesya Ukrainka, and later Russian theoretician Kazimir Malevich, whose geometic painting adorns at least one of his 12s. Hailing from the Ukraine also seems to be the buzz-fact that consistently gets thrown into any article or comment associated with Vakula, a producer whose music actually seem to have very little in common with the traditions of the Ukraine or even hint at that area of eastern Europe and its Russia surroundings.
Having spent a little more time immersed in his sounds lately, there is very little of a defining element to his music at all. Though you could say he fits into the house genre, that would be a fairly broad-brush label for someone who seems to mix and merge sounds not just across a variety of labels, but within most of his releases. Blissed-out ambiance washes over tunes like I Want to Dance with You All My Life, a gorgeous love song of a sunny-days dance tune which is just charged with soulful energy, similarly on releases such as the first release on the Shevchenko label (a probable Firecracker offshoot with nothing of a concrete description to be found across the 'net) the sounds of blissy ambience merge into a more tribal vocal chant, fading and dancing through the distorted but relenting hi-hats. Bug Powder is something of a psychedelic foray into weirdo instrumentation with a left-right swinging fade filling the room with sweet incense and the scent of 'shrooms; the track lifting finally into a mid tempo house beat.
Acid Release on Picture of You swings right into acid (unsurprising, that one), dropped right in the middle of the EP it just turns the atomsphere of the whole release, dragging compressed acid synth into squelching tones which somehow avoid sounding dated despite the straightforward setup on show; there's a turning point around 3 minutes which washes the track in dreamy vocals until it turns 180 degrees right back and into Music, a funky 80's dance tune of blurred city lights and pulsing tone.
But just like Vakula's music isn't some Slavic-tinged house gimmick, it equally isn't a patchwork of disconnected sounds. Everything he produces exudes some intricate geometric understanding of the way to weave dance music, and indeed his own sound, into something which doesn't rely on a definable genre: each release stands as a varied but connected statement of intent, all the elements sitting together, not blended but still united.
Next month, Vakula will release a full length album in which apparently he will be " combining elements of Ukrainian folk melodies, esoteric cryptic rhythm patterns, field recordings, interludes and overgrown organic effects hidden beneath acres of cosmic murk " which on the surface sounds like the sound I'd been expecting from the off, but somehow to have this as a concise body of work sounds intriguing. It does feel like Vakula's music is approaching a point of distillation, perhaps with a reduced output of more focused releases, this seems like a great way to move forward into new territory.
You've Never Been to Konotop is released through Firecracker Recordings soon.
Vakula
Kristina Records (Dalston)
Phonica (Soho)
Edit:
Check out Vakula's new mix for LWE (Via Little White Earbuds)
Having spent a little more time immersed in his sounds lately, there is very little of a defining element to his music at all. Though you could say he fits into the house genre, that would be a fairly broad-brush label for someone who seems to mix and merge sounds not just across a variety of labels, but within most of his releases. Blissed-out ambiance washes over tunes like I Want to Dance with You All My Life, a gorgeous love song of a sunny-days dance tune which is just charged with soulful energy, similarly on releases such as the first release on the Shevchenko label (a probable Firecracker offshoot with nothing of a concrete description to be found across the 'net) the sounds of blissy ambience merge into a more tribal vocal chant, fading and dancing through the distorted but relenting hi-hats. Bug Powder is something of a psychedelic foray into weirdo instrumentation with a left-right swinging fade filling the room with sweet incense and the scent of 'shrooms; the track lifting finally into a mid tempo house beat.
It's a Kafka high.. you feel like a bug
Acid Release on Picture of You swings right into acid (unsurprising, that one), dropped right in the middle of the EP it just turns the atomsphere of the whole release, dragging compressed acid synth into squelching tones which somehow avoid sounding dated despite the straightforward setup on show; there's a turning point around 3 minutes which washes the track in dreamy vocals until it turns 180 degrees right back and into Music, a funky 80's dance tune of blurred city lights and pulsing tone.
But just like Vakula's music isn't some Slavic-tinged house gimmick, it equally isn't a patchwork of disconnected sounds. Everything he produces exudes some intricate geometric understanding of the way to weave dance music, and indeed his own sound, into something which doesn't rely on a definable genre: each release stands as a varied but connected statement of intent, all the elements sitting together, not blended but still united.
Next month, Vakula will release a full length album in which apparently he will be " combining elements of Ukrainian folk melodies, esoteric cryptic rhythm patterns, field recordings, interludes and overgrown organic effects hidden beneath acres of cosmic murk " which on the surface sounds like the sound I'd been expecting from the off, but somehow to have this as a concise body of work sounds intriguing. It does feel like Vakula's music is approaching a point of distillation, perhaps with a reduced output of more focused releases, this seems like a great way to move forward into new territory.
You've Never Been to Konotop is released through Firecracker Recordings soon.
Vakula
Kristina Records (Dalston)
Phonica (Soho)
Edit:
Check out Vakula's new mix for LWE (Via Little White Earbuds)
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