Bristol based Brummie ‘Zobol’ drops his debut double 12” LP ‘Waveform Trajectory’ on Wave Function
Seemingly in a rich vein of form right now, Bristol based Brummie Zobol (Jon Chmielewski) drops his debut double 12” release ‘Waveform Trajectory’ courtesy of Sound Synthesis and his newly founded Wave Function imprint.
Much to the delight of machine jammers and sound associates alike, if you’ve been keeping tabs on his recent releases for the likes of Noise to Meet You, Analog Concept, Nocta Numerica and Haŵs, Erbium and Mint Tea. You’ll have noted that he means business – returning this time with 8 smoking hot star struck jams. Demonstrating his ability to straddle a range of influences and really shape them into his own sonic sphere.
As Chmielewski puts it, ‘the process of making music provides a form of escapism’. Something the pandemic and lockdowns really brought into focus as he chose to concentrate on mastering various hardware and production techniques. An extension of the practices he first chose to dedicate himself to over a decade ago.
‘Waveform Trajectory’ is a bright mix of jumping rhythms, interstellar melodics and pure machinist aesthetics, all shot through a squelchy braindance like twist. Woven together with a healthy slice of digital soul, the album gives you an alluring peek inside this artist’s creative mindscape and is nothing short of a high-calibre collection.
From the opening frenzy of ‘First Contact’, you really feel an urgency reign down as a quivering arpeggiated lead presses forward – met with sparse rhythmic patter and swirling bass. ‘Stranger’s Echo Chamber’ opens out more slowly, evolving into more foreboding territory as the deep end of an 808 rings out. The joyously jazzy air of ‘Footwork’ springs you back onto your feet, spinning new life into the rapid essentials of the genre, all led with upbeat tones. Only to be contrasted again by the gentler sway of ‘Caelum’.
By the time you get to the emotive electro of ‘Sinking’ and fierce driving bass end of ‘Schrodinger Equation’ – a kind of sci-fi melancholy seeps in. However, the shimmer and light touch of ‘Probability Density’ provides you with yet another lift. As last but not least, he finishes out on the wistfully stirring ambience of Wave-Particle Duality, that sums up the full mastery on display.
