L.A. born, Tokyo-based producer/muso/songwriter Justice Aaron is the one-man band behind the electro-pop/hip-hop project also known as METAFORM. A prominent face in the world of trip-hop, he's still perhaps best known for his big-selling 2008 debut album 'Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants' (a record constructed entirely from samples).
Simmering opener 'Electric Eyes' burns as lightning flashes strike bedsit dreams, and there's a hint of in-touch-with-the-feminine also present, as the three minute drama skips in step with the lunar cycle.
Rapid-fire beats signal a change of pace without an overall hike-up of the tempo, as 'Revenge Of A Nerd' nods and chimes self-reflexively at the anorak qualities that analogue synth enthusiasts and aficionados seem to share (C'mon all you ambient house devotees, get your hands up!).
There's a readily apparent celebration of the marginal in the album's subject matter (as demonstrated by tracks entitled 'OCD' and 'Secretly Alone', the latter being the most shimmering ode to solitary obscurity on the ear at least). The collection is also recognisable as such due to its shared tones of heartbreak and super-urgency.
The vocal FX might be off-putting (this type of noise never fails to put me in mind of that nasty Cher single), but there is power behind these quickfire bursts of semi-abstract electro-anguish. Largely incidental in structure, with smatterings of drum and bass percussion adding a racing pulse, the average three-minute track length is only excerpt-size for the genre, so THE ELECTRIC MIST plays like a series of brief encounters, most of which successfully harness quite incredible tension due to tricks of speed and and a resulting form of ambience that seems to misfire or represent dysfunction in some way.
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The melodies are deep-set to say the least (the dreamlike, but instantly likeable 'Door Number One' being the only exception). 'Electric Mist' is a boys' record that will appeal to beat professors and techno enthusiasts in the main, but the appeal definitely grows with each listen as this odd series of snapshots and momentary glances begins to get to work on the soul.
As a proper anorak boy myself (though not quite up to trainspotter standard), I therefore think it's pretty brill, so there you go. It definitely gets my vote, so I'm giving it the (pretty) big thumbs-up, almost without hesitation.
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