March 4, 2022 - Young Ethics
A lone figure strikes a pose against an off-white wall. Facial features are locked in place; there is a certain comfort being in front of the camera. The softbox lights warm the space. A bead of sweat rolls down the figure’s chin and plummets to the soft digital grass below. The shimmering surface of the droplet mirrors the world around it—the figure and the wall and the lights. The figure looks down at the droplet on the grass and sees not the reflection, but another figure. A miniature. A copy. The figure looks back at the camera and says, “Not enough fantasy.” The droplet bursts and the world falls in on itself.
Viggo Dyst of Stockholm (or is it Berlin?) is here to present Not Enough Fantasy on DJ Seinfeld’s Young Ethics imprint. The tracks here run the gamut of minimal maximalism with an almost scientific sentimentality. Dyst takes tiny samples of pond water and throws them under a microscope, plunging deep into the seemingly shallow and lifeless world that lies between the glass and slide protector. Anyone who’s looked at pond water under a microscope should know that even the tiniest droplets contain a multitude of life and depth and complexity. Dyst pushes these boundaries sonically, increasing the magnification on percussive loops and textural pads until they grow in size and shrink back down, like a fractal.
A few of the pieces here, notably ‘Devil’s Ivy’ and ‘Halfway Out,’ break this pattern, offering a more linear, introspective listening experience. The field recordings and gritty piano lines offer respite from the more technical dancefloor explorations of other tracks. The whole experience is wrapped up nicely with ‘That Which The Sea Breaks Against,’ an aptly titled piece that builds up layer upon layer of sonic fleece until it collapses, releasing the potential energy of the album into the ether. There might not be enough fantasy in the world, but projects like this help keep the balance, offering rest for a weary mind, a weary body, a weary soul. 🍍