- Howling, the duo of Ry X, a singer and producer, and Frank Wiedemann, an Innervisions cofounder and one half of Âme, is a project born of spontaneity. "For both of us, it's just about the creation," the vocalist has said, and Howling's music clings to the loose, unassuming nature inherent in their approach. So while you might expect an EP of techno remixes to reformat Howling's energy into something more direct (especially with Rødhåd and Radio Slave involved), Signs Remixes actually capitalizes on the spaciousness of its source material.
There's no lack of 4/4 kick patterns in these three productions, but each one uses the steady pulse as an anchor for wispy incidentals and phantom textures. Swiss producer Kalabrese ties sparse piano chords and breathy vocal phrases around a freeform jazz sensibility, giving "Signs" some color with subdued synth flourishes. The bubbling track never reaches far above a whisper, and that quiet tension can be tantalizing. On the other hand, when Radio Slave and Thomas Gandey fail to deviate from their dubby, percussive plateau, their 11-minute remix does little more than spin its wheels. Rødhåd handles "Signs" most effectively, warping Ry X's voice into alien forms. His version boasts the EP's burliest kick and fastest tempo, but nonetheless it remains dependent on the surrounding intangibilities. Somehow the strict attention to atmosphere makes a relatively barren production feel purely immersive.
TracklistA1 Signs (Rødhåd Remix)
A2 Signs (Kalabrese Remix)
B1 Signs (Radioslave & Thomas Gandey / Last Communication Remix)