November 18, 2012 • self-released
After clamoring about the redemption of the witch house scene that was Shrines, it seems a bit unfair that I'd basically ignore the genre after that, even though I do have an interest in the original groups. Mathbonus isn't pure witch house either, and if the original scene ripped off southern hip hop, the new stuff is after electronica. Languid still retains the dark, gloomy atmospheres and club-like beats of the older groups, but strips it down and refines it a bit into something definitely more tolerable.
Mathbonus, to me, sounds like the Burial of witch house, believe it or not, mostly due to the abundance of pitch-shifted vocal samples and clattery shuffle beats. While Burial's use of vocal samples never sat well with me, it seems to work rather well for Mathbonus somehow. Other elements like the deep, clean, atmospheric drones and cold melodic lines behind the loud beats bring the dubstep giant to mind—not to mention the arpeggio lines in "Haunt Me" that seem lifted straight from "Ashtray Wasp". But it all clicks together pretty well, and there isn't a lot that feels forced about the EP's sound (though the vocal samples can be a bit jarring at first, especially in "Orchid").
Hopefully, Languid is indicative of a maturing trend when it comes to witch house and garage; a more stripped-down and reasonable sort of music without the tacky "eerie" moods (or, at least, less of them). Or maybe I just like this more. Who knows?
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