Mary Knoblock, otherwise known as DJ Mek, has only been creating and releasing music for the past year or so. However, the Heart Shakers album, and in fact every release of hers to date, presents a series of complex, intricate musical compositions; all of which suggest a much more experienced artist at work. To give you a little more insight, here’s a run through of some of her most striking compositions so far.
Hawthorne Rooftops is an unusual and interesting collection of sounds and musical moments that collide and collaborate in the build up to what is an intensely ambient final couple of minutes. The Wooden Music Chair is something of a unique, detailed, atmospheric masterpiece. The way in which the producer fuses these organic and electronic sounds, these genres even, is mesmerising, and at over four minutes long you really get taken away by the journey of the soundscape.
Midnight Departure takes the eclecticism even further. This track features a sublime saxophone part, the return of the piano – haunting and organic – and an infectious rhythm and underlying energy that is incomparable. As an artist, there’s so much creative freedom here it’s fascinating, and as a producer, the professionalism means that everything works beautifully. The structure is on point, the finish is crisp and smooth all at once, and the music comes through as calming and hypnotic.
Jukebox Nights is an insanely heavy and intense piece of music that feels as if it sweeps your mind off into some world of retro gaming chaos. As always, the overall effect is incomparable, and while the manic energy of the samples plays out, there’s still, somehow, this mellow, slightly haunting, dreamlike ambiance lurking in the backdrop. It’s a extremely clever way to compose and create and express. The artistry of it is powerful, and completely free of outside influence it seems. The human mind at work.
Good Enough Undone continues the variety, setting an unbelievably powerful atmosphere that is loaded with electronic influence and energy yet that somehow comes through once again as this uplifting wave of positive ambiance. The difference between this and perhaps the majority of EDM releases is that there is a sense of craftsmanship to the music; there’s a story to it all, there are moments of calm that are filled with unexpected details and incidents, and this makes the listening experience so much more interesting and valuable.
Snow Leopard is a stunningly original musical offering. As if there wasn’t enough character or creative wildness elsewhere in the collection, this piece marks the pinnacle of creative enjoyment. The chosen instrumentation representing the leading riff has a funky and quirky vibe that drives the rhythm of the piece superbly. The music makes you smile, it’s unpredictable, it’s melodic and enjoyable, and yet everything about it is unfamiliar or difficult to pinpoint in terms of the individual elements that make it what it is. There’s nothing more you can hope for when a producer offers something so mind-bendingly unusual yet simultaneously musically satisfying in every possible way. Highly likely to bring you back to hear it all over again and to share it with those you care about.
Download the album Heart Shakers and much more via iTunes or stream on Spotify. Find & follow Mary Knoblock, AKA DJ Mek, on Instagram.
