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July 6, 2018 - Unknown to the Unknown
Global tastemaker, renowned creator, and self-described kleptomaniac Kornél Kovács has new product to offer. The Studio Barnhus co-owner from Sweden has taken his wares to the United Kingdom’s Unknown to the Unknown and the fit is tight.
The project opens with ‘Metropolis,’ a bouncing belter that feels right out of the Beautiful Golden House Music Scene of the 1990s. Vocal cuts and percussive breaks flow in perpetual canon atop layers of bass and kick drum. It’s one of those tracks that makes you smile in spite of yourself. Kovács rides the EQs like a DJ who’s having too much fun; forgetting the Hi’s are cut, throwing the Lo’s off too early — it’s great fun and even a bit cavalier, though I get the feeling that Kovács doesn’t care much of what others think about his musical choices. If he does, I apologize, though caring less about what others think is something we could all stand to do, particularly in the creative field.
‘Babasonic’ mellows the mood with a dark, fat bass line that expands to fill every nook and cranny. Though the tracks are supposedly named after Kovács’s clubbing spots from days of yore, ‘Babasonic’ also brings to mind Baba Stiltz, the hot new talent emerging from Studio Barnhus. The track employs some of the same percussive styles that Stiltz has been rinsing lately. Halfway through, the track hiccups into a softer melodic space as a vocal sample becomes more prominent and the driving bass line backs away slightly.
The final cut ‘Panda’ brings things back into focus. Silly yet serious samples take center stage on a minefield of delay and room filling reverb. The track is a little thinner than its companions; the intro and outro feel a bit padded for DJ comfort. That said, there is still an abundance of character on this track as well as the project as a whole. Kovács has brought three strong independent songs together in a way that transcends signature audio; he could take any assemblage of noises and make it sound in his own style.
When the going gets tough and the world seems to be losing itself, Kornél Kovács is one artist I find myself turning to. Whether through his own audio projects, remixes, or other’s releases on Studio Barnhus, Kovács is consistently able to cut through the conjectural bullshit and deliver true and good dance music. 🍍