Despite what clickbait hacks and internet sucker finders might tell you these days, there’s a verifiably rich history of mutual respect when it comes to the respective undergrounds of electronic and guitar-driven music, whether it’s djent, prog, or math rock. But rather than take an old man’s stance and get mad about forgotten history, let’s just make it clear – we are here as fuck for the crossover, and today’s remix EP from Maul Tide makes it all too easy to see why.
See, the original version of Visual Plea that came out in February wasn’t messing around, already careening from one point of the musical spectrum from song to song, taking from Don Caballero in one moment and from Yowie the next. That is to say, it is a completely different experience from its remixed companion, but both come highly recommended, and often for the same reasons.
Check it out below:
With the original’s raw, cathartic takes, you’d think that the remix EP would have to work within some of those dynamics, but thanks to a diverse set of contributors, we have more of a kaleidoscopic set of sounds. “Tyranny Sorry Rex” is seriously strange, and it was before, but now it almost sounds like the kind of thing you’d hear in a tense, cerebral survivor horror game.
Of course, given the context, it makes sense that you’d expect a lot of chip-tune and broken down bit destruction, but perhaps the biggest strength here is the record’s diversity. Everyone brings their own flavor to the songs, and as the journey goes on we get bits of hardstyle, 2-step, IDM, slushwave, DnB, dub, and more, perhaps best exemplified by the expanded saga that is the sequence of “Tyranny Sorry Rex,” “Proximity Yurz,” and “Subnet Fisheries.”
Overall, the Visual Plea – Remixes EP really gives you something to ponder if you’ve ever thought were else your songs, or even just your stems like guitar parts or drums, could go. Here is hoping enough people hear the songs and are inspired to do something similar. We’ll be watching!
(Thanks for reading! If you’re looking for more music, check out our Bandcamp compilations here. If you like us, or possibly even love us, donations are always appreciated at the Buy Me A Coffee page here, but if you’re in a generous mood you can also donate to folks like Doctors Without Borders, the PCRF, Charity Water, Kindness Ranch, One Tail at A Time, Canopy Cat Rescue, or Best Friends Animal Sanctuary that could probably use it more – click on their names above to check ‘em out if you’re so inclined. Thanks again!)