Lord of the Isles
Parabolas Of Neon

Release Date: 2017 | Tracklist

Scottish producer Lord of the Isles lives up to his namesake. We get the impression of a lonesome, monarch-like figure who treats his estate as an artistic retreat. Parabolas of Neon feels like a city’s worth of clubbing confined to a single building, then placed in a lush, remote wilderness setting. Imagine a barn rave with glass walls, surrounded by deep woods, and you have a good idea of opener “Sunrise 89”. The song gradually layers, like an ad hoc construction process, while the sounds of nature seem to be undefined at the edge of earshot. We get a base layer of acid house and cold textures, which seem to regularly and unexpectedly shape to fit different moulds. The beatless “An Stuc” seems to freeze space and time, as Neil McDonald (Lord of the Isles) kind of wanders, sorting out his mental priorities via cooling synths. Following that, “Bryte” is a brief, invigorating breath of air before further absorbing the ambience of “Tocpe 28” ’s church organ-fueled star gazing. The EP is powerful both in the wider scope of the songs, and the minute details therein. Closer (and maybe the strongest track, but it’s a tossup) “Parabolas of Neon” feels like a nostalgic dystopia, with looming synths that dip in and out of the dark, while an addictive light snare rhythm persists. Lord of the Isles treats the club as a capricious entity, rather than something unwaveringly uniform in progression. It results in something regal and tender.

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3 good