Review: UGI & Jaan - Quaternity II (Wic) [Post Punk]
Erik Harbers aka UGI and Gerhardt Heusinkveld aka Jaan work well together. They hit the ground running two years ago and haven't stopped since. Both from Holland, Harbers is a bass player with a fondness for the moodier, lower-lit, post-punkier-funkier end of the musical spectrum. Heusinkveld is an equally uncompromising, multi-disciplinary artist, man of monikers, not to mention a writer with a collage fetish - just check that artwork, as well as a song-writing guitarist, percussionist, band member and solo artist. Together they make a wonderful racket, and their music seems to have found a good home on the outsider championing Wic Recordings from their home country.
Apparently, they call their music 'eclectric collage boogie', which is as good as anything, I guess, but doesn't adequately convey the urgency and energy of their transmissions. Perhaps it's an age thing, something I can relate to, but there's a real eighties post-punk attitude, and yes anger, permeating their music. It's the sort of man-machine music that you want to see live, and will probably end up coming home from with a couple of unexpected bruises and smelling of sweat and beer; surely a sign of a good night out?
The pertinently entitled 'When A Robot Writes A Play' is an edgy, electroid, slow-rocking, future-dubstep breakdown nodding soundtrack for our near-future/present (delete as applicable) AI fuelled, surveillance-capitalism blighted existences. Not quite a f*^k you, but full of simmering resentment, and a wake-up call to the currently hypnotised, phone gazing zombie massive that humanity, not just culture is in trouble. It's back to the post-punk indie-rock eighties heyday on 'Square Mirror', with its moshpit-starting bassline, heavy guitars and swirling electronics, although I can't help think that the duo need a vocalist rather than spoken word samples. Next up is 'Too Much Moaning' a more stripped back, vigorous head nodder with a slight industrial clank and no-wave nihilism to it. I'm not quite sure what 'Neerpelt Nightlife' refers to, but out of curiosity I'd put on my black jeans and t-shirt and have a couple of beers there on a weekend, if its Prodigy-like groove and edgy guitars are anything to go by. I bet you'd meet some characters there.
For more far-out post-punk mutations you could do a lot worse than check out Snapped Ankles - Hard Times, Furious Dancing album, and pretty much everything they've every done.
Playlist Companion
Find UGI & Jaan in the End of Week Freak Playlist.
