UK veteran and near-walking-legend of the electronic scene, Floating Points is prone to reinvention. The last most audiences heard of him, he united with Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra, a hard left turn into classical music and jazz that spoke to exactly how far he was willing to push the envelope from his dance music bread & butter. With his latest, things are back on course in terms of genre but remain as surprising and experimental as ever. Here’s everything you need to know about the latest Floating Points LP, Cascade.
An Undeniable House Music Start For Floating Points & Cascade
While it may read as a pejorative, one of Cascade‘s most compelling selling points is how unrelenting it is. That’s on two fronts, perhaps best exemplified by track 3, “Key103.” The song begins with a red meat house heartbeat, providing eminently danceable grooves and sparkling synth work. Towards the midpoint, it jumps into a slow creep into total distortion; noisy SFX gradually enters the mix before a cacophony of noise becomes comprehensive. And then, like a conductor closing their fist, it disappears in an instant- we’re back square on the dancefloor as the whole process begins anew.
That descriptor of the project’s harsher moments is perhaps a better fit for an interstate pile-up than electronic music, but there’s beauty in them all the same. Much of that derives from sheer contrast. The explosion in ‘Key103,” if it’s not entirely your speed, is paid off with shimmering, hopeful strings in the song’s conclusion that speak to an inherent dichotomy Floating Points runs throughout Cascade.
With Plenty Of Experimental Touches Towards The Close
As Cascade progresses, Floating Points returns to the experimental fare that defined his early career. “Afflecks Palace” might be the best example, with pounding grooves & rhythms overshadowed by industrial, noise-inspired SFX over the top that establishes a psychedelic yet uncanny atmosphere. It closes with some beautiful acoustic drums, a crashing section that scratches the same itch as the “Amen break” at the tail end of a true techno odyssey. “Ablaze,” the project’s closer, takes things down as many notches as humanly possible, embracing Floating Points’ ambient backlog for a quieted meditation to fade out from the project’s heightened moments.
Each of the pieces on Cascade venture towards the seven-minute mark, but Floating Points is still intent on providing the fodder for your most memorable club night ever. The multi-hyphenate’s fifth studio album simultaneously provides his hardest grooves and catchiest rhythms with his most subversive twists and turns, an endlessly rewarding listen that you won’t have to listen to but once to get plenty of reasons to revisit.
Catch Cascade and the full Floating Points backlog wherever you stream your music.
Elsewhere in our coverage, Jamie xx – In Waves similarly provides a high water mark for the UK musician.
