Kettel
Look At This! Ha Ha Ha! EP
(Kracfive)
Like many other tiny electronic labels, Kracfive has been putting out some seriously quality music over the years. Reimer Eising is the real name of the fellow behind Kettel, and if anything can be ascertained by looking at the cover of his newest EP, he's very excited about something. In addition to an exclamation point following the name of the release, one follows his name along with every single person he thanks on the back of the disc. Musically, things follow suit as well, with happy and playful electronic music that drops all pretension and rolls.
That's not to say that the release is up-all-night rave sounds or something like that, but it definitely has a somewhat silly side that shines through. After some opening squelches, "Reim Doesn't" lurches along with a juicy beat and some filtered vocal samples that sound like they were bounced off twisted wax. "Twinkle Twinkle That Is You" follows a looped piano melody and warm pads and guitars down the Morr Music path, sounding like a warm spring day while "Phillphill time" splutters and squirts like a my first Sony hopped up on goofballs.
There's even one quiet moment in the midst of everything, and "Bird-Covered Lungs" makes you feel like you're sitting on the playground with Boards Of Canada. Basically, imagine if you tossed a smidge of about 10 different artists (including Plaid) into a pot and topped it off with a dash of spastic. While it's not the most original-sounding disc out there, it's a quick blast of fun if you like the aforementioned artists.
Rating: 6.5
