Audeka's track Mondus, released on MethLab's Sentinel LP, is to date perhaps one of the most powerful tracks I have ever heard. In contrast to this, Leisure Lands sets the tone with its artwork: a soothing, mellow painting created by one of the group's members, with the apparent idea of all of the EP's music being a soundtrack to the visual piece in various ways. The contrast between this concept and the Audeka that I know is stark, but to me, it is always interesting to see musicians trying a different sound, and I sure as hell have faith in Audeka being able to pull it off in a spectacular way. As per usual, I will review the tracks in alphabetical order.

Batu

The opening sounds and title of this track immediately give off a tribal feeling. The sounds remind me of jungle soundtracks, featuring chanting effects and being primarily percussion focused. From the onset of the track, it is immediately apparent that a lot of effort has gone into crafting these sounds. I am inclined to believe that these are not synthesized drums, rather them being recorded and digitally manipulated. If I am to believe Audeka then several real-world instruments will have indeed been used in the production of this EP. I am personally not hugely into percussion-based music, however one thing I do really like about this track is how it sounds very natural yet it also features the intricacy and accuracy of digital music. The track takes a different turn for me slightly after the halfway point, where the track shifts focus and turning into something I quite like. The focus on the intricacy of the drums makes way for a more soothing soundscape, featuring atmospheric pads, a percussion-esque melody and an actual cello in the buildup. The soundscape that is set here in my mind transports me to a large open clearing within the trees of a dense rainforest, perhaps surrounded by ancient temples or mesoamerican ruins. The intensity of the track also increases ever so slightly, most notably due to the bass of the track kicking in slightly harder during this section. Unfortunately, the journey that Batu takes me on ends not long after, but a journey nonetheless it has been. This track in its entirety is perhaps not my favourite of the release, but it certainly has it's high points too and the incredible intricacy of the sound makes for a very interesting listening experience regardless.

Found A Walking Stick

This track's name perhaps has a double meaning. It could perhaps relate to a literal walking stick used to perhaps wander the landscapes in the painting, or it could refer to an actual stick insect, which is naturally difficult to spot. From the vocal sample in the intro, I believe the title refers to the latter one. I'd like to believe there is a stick insect hidden in the painting somewhere, but unfortunately, I haven't managed to find it yet. Regardless of what the title pertains to, this track does not joke about and drops right in your face after the introductory vocal. The section of music that follows is quite honestly brilliant in so many different ways. The beat with its perfectly heavy kick and fat snare does an astounding job at setting the momentum, yet the temp keeps it mellow and laid back. The drums are accompanied by a very subtle lo-fi bassline with an interesting melodic twist and a lovely plucked melody which I cannot help but hum along to every time I hear it. To top all this off is a very subtle clinking of bells or chimes layering the bassline which for some reason is one of my favourite things about the whole thing. The energy of this track unfortunately only continues for about a minute and a half before it descends into a section focusing purely on the melody. The earlier mentioned plucks are developed into an actual melodic piece here which is backed by an interesting low-frequency instrument which I quite honestly cannot identify. The crispness and clarity of the beats section of the track is traded in for a more gritty and distorted atmosphere here, being less to my liking but certainly setting an interesting contrast. This track only lasts two and a half minutes but even considering that I have to say that it is very high up the favourites list for this EP. It is a very small box of music, but there are just so many things right about it. They often say good things come in small packages...

Grass

Grass is the track that follows Found A Walking Stick, which is ironic because looking at the EP as a whole I would say the latter is a sister track of Grass. Grass features a very similar beat pattern, though its drums are less pronounced and slightly slower. The track's focus is also more on its melodic synth work which layers the whole track near enough start to finish. The bassline is also not as dominant, merely rolling along in the background after the drop. Grass' relation to the EP's artwork is fairly obvious, but regardless I believe the two match each other very well. It is not difficult to imagine floating across the sunlit grassy fields depicted in the artwork with this track being the backing music. Slightly after the halfway point the synths temporarily drop and the track briefly increases in intensity, which is a very neat trick as I can imagine this track being in danger of becoming somewhat monotonous without it. The synths are seamlessly blended back into the track after a short while, however, which leads the track into its final moments. As a whole, I believe that Grass stands out as this EP's signature track. It's got very strong relaxing vibes all over, whilst being a touch melancholic also. For me, Grass lacks the punchiness and energy that I like in Found A Walking Stick, but Grass is an absolute joy to listen to. If I was asked to pick one track from this EP to promote it, this would be it.

Leisure Lands (ft. Monolog Rockstars)

The EP's titular track starts out somewhat eerie with its pads slowly phasing into existence, presenting a nice backdrop sound for the EP's artwork as a whole. Not long after the mood is broken by the track's bass slowly fading in, the sound of which is incredibly erratic and puzzling in the best possible way. it feels as if the notes are constantly trying to push each other out of the way and as such it is difficult to initially find the rhythm of the track. Only after a short moment do the kickdrums enter the fray, which seem to have a commanding presence as not long afterwards the rather rowdy bass seems to get told off and starts to neatly follow the tempo of the track. The track then continues to evolve as the snares join in to form what is my favourite bit. I can totally imagine the robot depicted in the artwork getting up and taking a casual stroll across the fields to the beat of this section. The track from here on actually sounds quite jovial and happy, which is not what you would expect after the intro. The snare changes once into a more minimal one and then disappears altogether when the track introduces a very interesting melody that constantly wants to take the stairs downwards. The beat not long afterwards starts to slightly disintegrate at times, with parts of the percussion being numbed or missing here and there. It gives an interesting feeling to the section yet it makes listening to the track slightly harder. After this, the track starts to slowly wind down in energy, as if metaphorically the robot has ended its leisure stroll. I really like the sounds in this track, but what I perhaps like, even more, is the variety of them. This track brings a huge variety of soundscapes in its almost 6-minute length, perhaps even more so than the other tracks in this EP. It makes for a very interesting listening experience that I keep coming back to.

Robots Have Emotions

This track obviously directly references the earlier mentioned robot, which is a centrepiece in the EP’s artwork. Robots Have Emotions starts out as expected, featuring a short captivating intro which hums and buzzes, perhaps as a metaphor for the robot coming online. The section that follows is a more relaxing piece of music which sounds to me very clockwork and machine-like in nature. The most interesting thing about this section I find the little bell-like sounds that form the melody which makes me think of small toy machinery, like wind-up toys and music boxes. Precisely halfway through the track, this section ends and a slow cello piece continues in its place, which is layered by the earlier mentioned bells giving it a somewhat mysterious atmosphere. This lovely cello section continues as a crescendo, subtly increasing in intensity whilst delightful wailing pads and shimmering effects are added to the backdrop. To me, this track almost plays out like a story. The first section describes the robot’s cold mechanical nature, whereas the second section is organic and human in nature, especially since the cello is most certainly played by hand. I believe the track tells a story of the robot finding its emotions in a way, or maybe it is a metaphor for how the robot sees the landscape depicted in the painting. Whichever it might be, the track undoubtedly stands out as an expertly crafted piece that takes an even different direction to the already different sound this EP has to begin with.

Snail Gets Armor

Snail Gets Armor initially started out as a track that had me really confused, as it follows a very odd tempo in a less than usual time signature. After the rhythm became clearer it started to resonate with the titular snail a bit more, which can also be seen in the painting. Snails obviously don’t move very fast, and the striking rhythm of the intro makes me imagine a snail moving in a comical fashion, slowly wagging its shell left and right. The track continues to introduce a variety of odd sounds as it progresses, which fits the mysterious snail theme very well. The track gradually builds up intensity up to about one-third of the way through, where it unexpectedly switches into a different section which I swear shifts the time signature a bit, or I’m not hearing it right. In either case, the drums here are much more intense and an ominous atmosphere now hangs over the track, which foreshadows the absolutely astounding bass drop about to happen. This section, where the snail metaphorically gets its armour, hit so hard and unexpectedly I near enough fell out my chair when I first heard it. Even though it is only 16 seconds long, this section delivers incredibly powerful yet terrifying sound design, almost as if the snail is drawing power straight from the gates of hell whilst undergoing its transformation (Felix Rothschild’s rather excellent accompanying animation for this track does a very good job at visually describing this). This section is certainly the heaviest of the LP, and certainly the closest thing to a throwback to Audeka’s usual style. After the snail is done rampaging around the track ironically enough returns to a much more mellow state, reintroducing the same rhythm present at the start of the track but this time featuring birds chirping in the background. It is as if the snail, seemingly quite content with its new armour, just casually continues to lumber along as if nothing really ever happened. Audeka introduce some pleasant melodic elements into this track in lieu of the oddities heard before the drop, after which the track casually dies down. Snail Gets Armor is yet another track on this EP that seems to tell a story, but this one, in my opinion, is done the best. Maybe it’s because it’s so literal, though maybe there’s more to it than I am describing. Musically, it is a complex piece that consistently evolves and changes and mainly because the midsection is so incredibly well done it has to be my favourite of the EP.

Thought Dissolve (ft. Monolog Rockstars)

Thought Dissolve is an interesting piece in that it carries a very distinct muffled lo-fi sound across the entire track. Every sound in this track is very subtle and a bit more recessed, lacking the punch that most other tracks on this EP do have. The track starts out quite easy, featuring a modest intro with melodic elements that gradually evolve as it progresses. The drums in this into have a distinct bit of crunch and crackle to the in addition to their already muffled nature, which makes for an interesting sound. Not long after the track progresses into a more sinister-sounding buildup which features the main “rolling” sound that makes this track distinctive for me. It takes a long while for this track to really get going because by the time it actually drops it has already reached the halfway point time-wise. The drop does not disappoint, however, as it continues on the sinister atmosphere of the earlier buildup with a dark, breathy sounding bassline that complements the earlier introduced sound very well. The drums remain low-key, purely being there to drive the rest of the track forward. The track keeps evolving from here, adding some cool sounding percussion and vocal effects that give the track a tribal feeling similar to Batu. The track continues to roll on until it comes to a sudden end, where some dark pads fill up the last few moments of music. As described above, the lo-fi sound of this track is what sets it apart for me. I am not normally a fan of this kind of sound but Audeka and Monolog Rockstars have certainly pulled it off very well here. Thought Dissolve is complex, intricate, and has a very good mix of energy and subtlety at the same time. Safe to say I very much enjoy listening to this one!

Until the Morning

Whilst this track is not as long and certainly not as complex sounding as most of the EP’s other tracks, it stands out strongly for me as a track I can get lost in time and time again. Until the Morning is a piece that carries no pronounced beats or basslines; it is purely driven by its lovely warm melodic pads and synths, and that little two-tone sound in the background that somewhat reminds me of the chime of a grandfather’s clock. There is some percussion present, but it is very gentle and seems to be merely there to move the music along. Not long after the track’s start, a pleasant melody is layered on top of the already soothing soundscape. The sound of the track turns slightly more raw around the middle, adding some brief diversity before the track resumes with its familiar soothing soundscape, which lasts until the track comes to an end. Until the Morning is a track I feel perhaps might be perceived as coming secondary to some of the EP’s more striking pieces, but for me, this is certainly not the case. I love this little tune, and I’ve had it on loop for long periods of time. It’s fairly simple and a bit short but at the same time, it carries a stronger atmosphere than some other tracks on the EP, one that I also think fits the aesthetic of the EP’s artwork very well. Simply put, I love this little tune!

I have always seen Audeka as producers that, besides their unique style, have a level of production quality that surpasses many others. With Leisure Lands, they have proven that they can adapt these production standards to a substantially different style to their usual one. This EP is a perfect demonstration of Audeka’s talents. Their aim, in their words, was to create music that would fit inside their self-produced artwork, and they have succeeded beyond measure. Every individual track in this release is unique, interesting, diverse and expertly crafted. All of the tracks seem to tell their own story in addition to being enjoyable and listenable pieces of music, which I think is a major accomplishment in itself. There is simply so much content in this EP’s eight tracks that I have honestly struggled to succinctly describe all the little details I’ve heard. There is far more to this EP than I can put in words. The only thing I can say is that this EP as a whole is an absolute masterpiece – a work of art that goes along perfectly with its actual artwork. Not everything being strictly my style is completely irrelevant as far as I am concerned… I simply have to concede against the sheer level of quality of this release as a whole, it is just that good. Months after receiving this I still find little bits of detail in the tracks, and I will probably continue to do so for quite some time. I have nothing but praise for this release.

Final rating: 10/10
Favourite track: Snail Gets Armor

Leisure Lands is out now and available to purchase via YUKU here.

YUKU is a new and exciting label concept featuring a diverse roster of artists focusing on more than just music. It is a movement, a vision, a community. The most dedicated of its supporters are the Yukru. YUKU's concept for me is exciting and I feel has great potential. I trust that the people behind the label will go out of its way to produce masterfully crafted releases, each one being an experience on its own. This is why I have provided them with my support. In exchange for this level of trust, as a Yukru member I am entrusted with every single release on the label half a year in advance of its release date. In addition, I am provided with the actual vinyl releases, artwork prints and unique apparel. If you are an open-minded listener that likes being surprised by diverse sonic material and you are keen on being a driving force to make this happen, then perhaps being a Yukru member is something for you! For more information on joining, check out the following link for more information: https://www.yuku.io/blog/view/7/the-yukru​