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Review: Jack Foley
GERMANY'S Lawrence, aka Peter M Kersten, specialises in mixing
house with minimal techno and deep ambient influences and has
already delivered two albums.
His third, The Night Will Last Forever, is pretty much
more of the same as he seeks to continue his experimental narrative
with emotive melodies and electronic house grooves.
As such, his music is an acquired taste, but one well worth checking
out for fans of ambient dance, or the late night grooves that
Chris Coco and Rob Da Bank lay down during their acclaimed Blue
Room sessions.
The album opens with the delicate piano of Lost Images
before gradually building momentum through the deep bass lines
and atmospheric melodies of his first single, Swap.
Throughout, the album feels very nocturnal, as though it may
be accompanying some imagined soundtrack to an urban thriller
set in the dark.
Cab Driver is a classic example of this, a deeply atmospheric
slice of ambient-techno that contains a genuine sense of foreboding.
In truth, some of the album sounds a little repetitive, with
several tracks blurring into one another in an alcohol-induced
haze, yet there are moments to savour.
The gentle melodies of Leave Me Tomorrow, especially,
bring the album to a tender close, hinting at a sadness that might
not be there.
It's also a great track to bring you down after a possible night
on the tiles.
Yet much of The Night Will Last Forever requires patience
and several listens and is probably best left to the nocturnal
hours in which Lawrence prefers to exist.
Background biography
For those seeking more information about Lawrence, he is already
best known for being the producer of two albums for his own Dial
imprint and Ladomat (namely Lawrence and The
Absence of Blight), which have helped foster a growing
reputation as one of Germany’s hottest new producers.
As a DJ, Lawrence currently holds down residencies at Hamburg’s
Golden Pudel Club and Click, while on his and Carsten Jost’s
Dial label he has released numerous 12”s under the name
of Sten in what might be termed a more minimal techno style.
Then there is his Lloyd alter ego whereby he makes abstract hip
hop and there is also an ‘in progress’ ambient guitar
project called Bordeaux helmed by Turner, Carsten Jost, Peter
and Martin Hossbach, the owner of the Masseundmacht label.
The single, Swap, features remixes from Carsten Jost
and Serafin and is available on novamute.
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