South coast hypno synth menace
Who he?
MATTHS is a new project from Matthew Hodson, a modular synth aficionado from Brighton. In contrast to his earlier ambient releases, it finds him traversing hypnotic techno terrain.
Why MATTHS?
Boards Of Canada once told us that “music is math” and they were almost right (they missed out an “s”). Luckily MATTHS’ sound is free of complicated and obscure equations, though it does have a driving, psychedelic quality reminiscent of electronic brainiacs Jon Hopkins and Max Cooper. Which is evident on this debut on the Fat Cat label’s club-focused subsidiary FCR. ‘Velocet’ is all burrowing basslines and menacing synths that you can imagine thrumming from the speakers in Sonar festival’s massive hangar, while the B-side ‘Loop’ is a Möbius strip of teetering electronic repetitions and thudding kick drums that rapidly envelop the listener.
Tell us more…
Hodson makes his trippy sounds with a carefully assembled modular synth set-up, and has shared many of his patching techniques in a series of YouTube videos and performances. As course leader in music production at BIMM, he knows plenty about lacing together electronic sounds, not to mention performing them live, having supported Wire as well as fellow synth mavericks Ulrich Schnauss and Rival Consoles. Back in the studio, MATTHS has lent his particular expertise to the Radiophonic Workshop, working with them on new music at Peter Gabriel’s Real World complex. It all adds up to an exciting artist on the rise.
‘Velocet’ is out on FCR
