Review Summary: Ambience with an interesting IDM twist.
The Hyacinth Act is a solo ambient/IDM project done by the user mindleviticus. And if there’s one thing this dude has mastered is the buildup. Honestly, this is pretty short for an ambient album, with it only being 35 minutes long. But it makes it all the more impressive that he can balance setup and payoff in a way that doesn't feel too soon or boring.
A big aspect of this album is the IDM/Glitch aspects. It's interwoven super nicely into the ambient beats, with the best example of this being 2995. The ambient buildup slowly turns into a collage of glitch beats for the rest of the track. Bongcloud is pretty similar, with the Autechre influences apparent.
The two IDM centered tracks, Candid Opinion and Caterpillar, are some of the best on this album. It’s a bit difficult to describe, but there’s a lot of elements that all kind of just fall in place. It's not too wild, but just enough to be great. Everything progresses with a certain ease and flow despite everything.
There’s also a few droning tracks on the album, with my favorite being Knick Knack Garden. The IDM/Glitch edge that it brings adds just enough variety to make things interesting.
The only real problem with the album is that it’s too damn short. I’m left wanting more, especially from the drone tracks. It feels like the tracks that are 3 minutes have enough going for it to be extended to 5. Knick Knack Garden is only 5 and a half minutes long. But I suppose it's a good problem to have at the end of the day.
This is the only IDM album I’ve listened to this year, and it sets a pretty high bar. It sets out to do only a couple things, but does it very well. There’s enough surprises that make this album something else. I really love that glitch is used more than just in the background, which really helps set this album apart for me.
Great sputnik album, go listen to it already.
Recommended Tracks: Candid Opinion, Caterpillar, 2995, Bongcloud, Knick Knack Garden.
