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-press-
Review 07/05/04 by Walt Miller of Splendid Magazine
Full-Source
- The Nothing
Second Thought
Full-source is an odd and intriguing project from Tim Dwyer, a US-based experimental
elektroniker who could use a little bit of hype -- he deserves it. Judging
by his past, Dwyer's tendency is extreme dark ambience with hints of the melodic.
For whatever reason, The Nothing shifts some big gears, mixing his twisted
dispositions with synthpop-ish modeling, and the results are anything but
typical.
Still, you need more than just originality to deserve my hard earned cash,
and The Nothing has "it". Marking Dwyer's official debut as a singer,
the album makes extensive use of a voice that straddles Twitch-era Al Jourgenson
and Nivek Ogre's troubled croon. In fact, given his apparent love of haunting
strings and minor chord piano keys that can't be denied, I'd be surprised
if the artist wasn't a huge Skinny Puppy fan. "Sad Monster" and
"Seventy Five" are certainly possessed by similar bad dream scenarios,
soundtrack-ish drift that doesn't add structure so much as provide ghostly
habitats for the lyrical torment. These nihilistic sensibilities infect every
one of The Nothing's sixteen tracks to some degree, deliciously corrupting
a pop trifecta that includes the synth-dense "Nothing Is Another Today",
the ethereal "Shutdown" and the album's catchy, pseudo-anthemic
highlight "Thinking Again". While it would be attractive to include
bittersweet elements (tinges of hope, light breaking through black clouds),
Dwyer keeps the melodic thrust -- sometimes pretty at its core -- spitting
gloomy ochre; like turned cantaloupe, Full-source is rank, slightly rotten,
perilous.
In keeping with this trend, The Nothing stretches into bastardized-electro, putting Dwyer's own spin on '80s homage with "Android" and the excellent "Prior To", both utilizing vocoder and snappy rhythms to full, nostalgic effect (think electroclash stripped of the fashion and hedonism). And while Dwyer proves his popsmithing mettle time and again, he doesn't want anyone to forget his chops as a dark ambient maestro, so the album's latter half is heavy with tempered disquiet. Accordingly, "Shutdown (reprise)" and the grand, ironically-titled "A World To Enjoy" are The Nothing's death rattle, releasing the listener from its tortured, novel ride.
As I listened, I tried to pin down where Dwyer was coming from -- not an easy task. The Nothing's gothic overtones would easily appeal to the black-clad set, and, marketed properly, could reach a sort of cult status in that camp if there was the right sort of buzz around it. However, Dwyer's experimental roots seem to suggest other intentions. Whatever the case, Full-source is probably the most original synth-pop project I've heard in quite a while, and the artist behind it is one to watch.