Electronic music doesn’t get much more immersive and interesting than this – particularly when crafted to such a unique degree, with the perfectly consistent presence of professionalism and a clear passion for audio escapism. Perhaps the journey makes for something so intense and satisfying due to the perfect placement of I Am Alive at the very beginning – the bar is set high and the experience continues to follow suit; though in a notably eclectic manner. Or perhaps, more likely, it’s that this artist and producer has something creatively pure and exciting to offer.
I Am Alive introduces Marc Chemali’s way with music production in a memorable fashion – layers of nostalgia appear intertwined with those of a refreshingly new aura, creating around you an uplifting wash of entrancing synths and riffs, yet also calming you to your very core with precise and pretty repetition; a flawlessly captured sense of ambiance.
ICU follows the opener and builds a more delicate, dreamlike soundscape. Still those building blocks remain – these characteristics that make up the Marc Chemali approach to creativity. You realise, if you listen closely enough, that it’s the details and the fine way in which they’ve been fused and utilized that allows this music to be so effective. Whether nostalgia comes into play or not, ambient and electronic music fans alike will find this an easy pleasure to have fill the room. Your mind wanders far in this kind of setting, particularly within the likes of such a soothing and misleadingly simple-sounding piece as ICU.
Blissful delicacy continues with the quiet, hypnotic pulse of Airlock. Again, simplicity is key, but there’s nothing simple about the careful consideration that has crafted a track like this. You can easily lose yourself within this peaceful, thought provoking space – or you can sit back and appreciate the fine audio craft-work that has led to it. In either case, the composition seems to make time stop for a while – allowing you a moment to gather your thoughts; or to wander off into the ether with them.
Reset Me lifts the energy up a little and introduces a more industrial vibe – layers of beats and hits create a conveyor-belt of audio moments; quick and heavy individually, but impressively calming yet again as a united piece of music. As the track evolves, melodies and various moments of colour come into view. It’s quite mesmerizing to have this one rain down around you.
During the latter half of the EP, Voyage presents an unexpected element of darkness – a heavy and distant hum builds a sense of rising intensity or unsettled emotions as the track begins. Slowly but surely, this sci-fi inspired journey ensues – still with a touch of uncertainty, as is often the calling card of a true voyage. This project in full is easily well-suited to an evening of near-meditative deep thought or escapism.
Hyper Love ventures further into industrial experimentation – Chemali toys with time and space in his use of effects and rhythm. The details continue to grow and change throughout, slowly becoming emotionally energizing – making sure to hold you at the centre of the experience at all times. This is professionalism at work again, never failing to keep the listener in mind; or indeed, to fully become the listener. You get the idea from this collection that Marc Chemali is a music fan, through and through – that there’s an inherent passion in the attention to detail and the drifting, inspiring nature of the final playlist.
At the penultimate moment, Origin leads with a hint of a riff and a few clearer cut instances of character that help make it one of the more recognisable tracks on the EP. It’s a little reminiscent of the dance-core that was I Am Alive. A brilliant track and a welcomed moment of upbeat optimism.
Sky Hook follows and sees the pace reach even higher as the final track of the collection. The use of synths and the drum-and-bass style beat make for an all-encompassing moment of superb EDM vibrancy. The perfect way to finish, and a final reminder of the impressive and easy to repeat quality of Marc Chemali’s music in general. PROTOTYPE MUSIK is a must for electronic and ambient fans who’ve perhaps tired of the modern loops of the mainstream. A pleasure to stumble upon.
Every track on this project was created & recorded on analogue digital hardware between 2014 and 2018. Download the EP via Bandcamp.
