JOHN LAKVEET

Force of Reason

Groove Unltd. (2005)

Review by Bill Binkelman

John Lakveet is one of the better neo-Berlin artists (neo-Berlin = EM which uses the techniques and motifs of classic German electronic music, e.g. instrumentation, sounds, and sequences, but puts a fresh contemporary spin on it). While he's sometimes more of a traditionalist than, for example, Paul Ellis or Dom F. Scab, he still is not simply reworking the past glories of Tangerine Dream or Klaus Schulze. Force of Reason offers plenty of evidence of this fact, starting right off with the multiple evolutions of "Leibniz and contingency" which has light-hearted propulsive sequenced beats and notes but also quieter stretches where the music becomes more textural. "Copelson aperture" is even more of a "split personality" type of song, opening as a floating piece of shimmering ambient and electronic spacemusic, aglow with soaring washes and twinkling starfields, descending into noirish soundscapes fueled by haunting Vangelis-like horns booming against overt electronic effects, and then breaking out into an energetic/energizing assault of rapidly percolating sequences featuring bass beats, tones and lush keyboard undercurrents, before settling back into a calm pool of light at the end. A very cool track! "Checkmate to B. Russell" is, arguably, the most straightforward EM tune on the CD, starting right off with multiple synths, a pulsing bass beat, and whistling keyboards, and some nice sequencing later, all combined in a tasty and peppy reworking of classic Berlin elements.

Darker shadings inhabit "Descartes, the lance argument" (no, I have no idea what the hell these song titles are about either!), as swirling miasmas of electronic tones, pulsing cyber-organic textures, and eerie effects mutate into cheery spacy rhythmic EM via a bridge of echoed classical-style violins. The retro sounds of this passage are positively giddy in comparison to the rumblings and shadow which preceded it! Heck, this could almost be Ray Lynch's music, it's so damn likable and light-hearted (and light on its feet)! Before the track is over, Lakveet tries his hand at the same type of EM that Todd Fletcher has perfected (on albums like heat and china radio sunshine), with kinetic beats that criss-cross the borders between glitch, Berlin, and electronica. Nicely done!

Then there is the twenty-five minute "Platon in the cave of mirrors" which, to my mind, is one of the most experimental and unusual pieces of music I've ever heard on a Groove Unltd. recording. It's not bad, mind you, just an odd (and long) assemblage of musical "miniatures." Describing it in detail would prove maddening, as it traverses through a myriad of unclassifiable musical categories, offering a snippet here and a dash there, from warm washes to SF-like synth noises to dark textures and strange percussive effects, bouncing from optimistic stretches to moments that cause the hairs on the back of your neck to snap to attention! At the fifteen minute mark, amidst some orchestral crescendos and soaring spacemusic washes, we emerge briefly into the relatively familiar waters of retro EM/quasi-Berlin but only briefly before we undulate into more abstract pools of blaring horns, twinkling tones, and subtle background electronics coming and going before finally quieting down into some pleasant celestial ethereal shimmering notes, lilting flutes, and gentle brushes of keyboards. This is mind-blowing and imagination-stretching music coming from Groove.

Notwithstanding whether you'll like that long stretch of continuously evolving electronic music described above, Force of Reason is a great contemporary EM album, with enough retro and classic Berlin elements to delight old-timers and yet plenty of new wrinkles and innovative composing and performing by Lakveet to invigorate the genre with contemporary flavor and unconventional musical approaches. I recommend the album without reservation, provided you realize that 1/3 of the CD (the album runs almost 70 minutes long) contains that track which you may love or you may hate (I doubt you'll have a neutral reaction). Kudos to Lakveet, Boots and company for courage to head in a decidedly different direction, yet staying on course enough to keep most of us happy.