Free The Robots (né Chris Alfaro) has been a well-known presence within the Los Angeles beat scene, however he’s by no means been given the identical flowers as Nosaj Factor, Shlohmo, or a minimum of a half a dozen artists who put out information with the phrase “Brainfeeder” printed on the again. For the uninitiated, beat music is a grassroots motion began within the late 2000s by a free collective of musicians who usually congregated across the Low Finish Principle membership night time at The Airliner in Lincoln Heights, devoted to testing the boundaries of hip-hop manufacturing by transplanting in genres like IDM, jazz, and ambient. Low Finish wound up nearly 4 years in the past now, however Alfaro’s eclectic proclivities have solely intensified. New album Kaduwa is a product of a visit to the Philippines, the nation of his roots, which unexpectedly changed into a year-long keep when Covid-19 hit. Whereas immersing himself in his ancestral influences on Siargao Island, Alfaro used simply the bare-bones gear he had with him.
It’s a compelling origin story, the sort labels like to seize on to assist promote a file. However not like Free The Robotic’s earlier album, DATU—which blended samples sourced from Filipino albums with natural percussion devices and chirping nature noises—the native influences are identifiable solely intermittently. There are some indigenous-sounding drum patterns complimenting the programmed beats; “Aswang” takes its title from creatures of Filipino folklore, however leans closely on a pattern from obscure prog rock band Expertise. There’s the compelling trip-hop of “Far Away,” which options Cambodian-American singer Chhom Nimol of the band Dengue Fever. For probably the most half, Alfaro’s compositions are blunted, funky, and psychedelic. There are tracks for membership nights, tunes for early morning comedowns, and songs which can be appropriate for each.
The album stirs to life with “Machine Language,” and instantly there’s quite a bit happening: a probing bassline, Pharaoh Sanders pattern, spliced audio clips from an Nineteen Eighties Commodore 64 tutorial video. With its loungey keyboard taking part in and shuffling beat, “Outta Sight” is deep home music for the cocktail membership, whereas “Fangoria” is extra head-splitting electronica. If Free The Robots was streamlined by an absence of entry to gear, he has wrangled the whole lot he might out of the {hardware} he had accessible.
Kaduwa was additionally partially recorded in Barcelona and L.A., and Alfaro’s dwelling stays a muse. “Welcome to Los Angeles” options an audio clip from what appears like an outdated vacationer video, the carefree keyboard play mirroring this pre-packed idyllic picture of the town in an ironic, nearly derisory, means. In the meantime, three songs function singer Salami Rose Joe Louis (actual identify Lindsay Olsen), who hails from the Bay Space and is now signed to Brainfeeder. Salami provides her gentle, magical vocal type to Alfaro’s compositions that slink pleasantly together with unhurried grace—see the European pop flavored “Flowers.” As soon as extra including new ripples to his sound, Free The Robots continues to discover new frontiers, maintaining the torch burning for the L.A. beat freaks.
