I hadn’t heard of Oliver until booking him to perform at this year’s Great Escape Festival.
Timelapse - Walrus is a track taken from this mini album and starts off with a dizzy swirling while the beat slowing comes in and the rest of the track is built. Obvious comparison to other minimalist composers can be easily be made; Terry Riely, Steve Reich or Arthur Russel but as you head further in you start to feel a lot more familiar. Oliver describes this release as “pumped-up body music”. Inspiration has defiantly come from the dance floor. Not something I would expect from the winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award (2011).
Halfway through the track there’s a pause and a break down, the sort of dark sounds you’d expect to hear on a rave tape pack from the ‘90s, only instead of an Amen break the track is beautifully built up again and layered to perfection. Some might find this a little repetitive but listen closely and you’ll hear some well thought out production taking inspiration from Orbital and Photek, which comes clearer towards the end.
Adam Ryan (@thegreatescape)
The Great Escape