Dance first, ask questions later.
Whether that becomes the rule for 2011 or not, Welsh electronica outfit CYRION will succeed beyond all expectations in getting the New Year underway with an absolute bang, thanks to the fresh & explosive arrival of their blistering and quite brilliant second album.
Right from the cascading pulse and hypnotic frenzy of acid-driven opener 'Tone', it's a near-certainty that any acid rockers/techno lovers will be instantly hooked by this . For the rest, there is no place to hide (as Martha Reeves might put it). There might be an element of delayed shock as, almost three years on from the release of their eponymous debut album, 'Surrounded' kick-starts what in sonic terms,can only be described as an all-out war on complacency.
Frequencies are teased and tampered with both inside and out of the build-up/drop out looping structures we all know and love so well, and it's kick-yer trainers off and go for it time once again as the mushroom-munching duo throw up this unmissable chance to dance your way towards cerebral meltdown.
Crucially, these tunes defy and destroy most if not all preconceived expectations where hi-octane repetitive bpm music works - and what's more it all seems so effortless as CYRION waste no time in achieving the necessary dizzy heights that give the individual tracks a box-fresh sound that's brim-full of hallucinogenic, multi-dimensional energy.
The siren sound of blistering second track 'Avalanche' sees the latest warped reinvention of
disco gyrate ceaslessly both on and off the radar in such a way that creates a strong sense of relentless urgency. The crystal clear stop-start hard hitting handclap of 'Rise' hits both mind and body with an all-consuming full-blown sonic assault that sees the senses kept alert by a rhythm that's peppered with odd and distinctive one-off breaks. Gorgeous!
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'Hijack' initially slows the pace four tracks in, but it's a false sense of security of course - the track's ever-thickening density more than makes up for the SLIGHTLY slower tempo. Did you ever doubt that digital mayhem was in full control?
'Surrounded' hurtles along with no fear on a route one collision course with computer-driven sound and plays like an ultra-committed pledge from the Welshmen to ensure that the whole damn lot goes bollocks to sanity.
Concluding in emphatic style with vocal head-fragger 'Count This One', CYRION haven't so much created an album you'll get into, but one that will get into you. Absolutely blinding from start to finish, this is a record that simply refuses to be ignored.
The only musical direction that counts is the one that goes straight through the roof - them and us with it. Such is the gravity-defying power of properly-harnessed biorhythmic energy.
Indeed, therein lies the secret of what is, for me, one of the major strengths of this formidable partnership. Well done gentlemen, well done indeed - you've raised the standards and the stakes massively with this fine, fine record!
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