Agura Matra is lo-fi darkwave and electronica music project centered out of Indonesia. Continuing his melancholic, and organic sounding, sonic trademark, Matra mixes the familiar with the new, and really pushes the envelope with this release by incorporating more beats, electronic breakdowns, and vocals, as well as featuring more prominent industrial elements, overall giving it a more defined sound.
This is in contrast to the previous dreamy ambient landscapes he created with previous albums. However, as I said he does not relinquish is old influences to bring in the new. He merges the old atmospheric and nature induced ambiance with his more pronounced vocal & beat oriented sounds that he has focused on in this release.
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Slow and repetitive in nature, but moving along with enough interesting additions and variations to melody and sound, this release moves in an almost hypnotic and progressive nature. Some people might be turned off by the lo-fi vibes, something that makes this release almost akin to the post-punk or post-black metal genres at times, with waves of distortion and strange sonic artifacts proliferating the experience. However, I personally find it all to add to the enveloping nature of the release, as the swirling and spinning background noise creates more sonic space for the monotone rhythms to beat at their slow but marching pace, and overall helps you get lost in the dreamy vocals and sombre mood of the release.
An excellent addition to Agura Matra's prolific 2016 release list, and an awesome way to end last year (this release was released at the beginning of December of 2016). Respect to Agura Matra, and I look forward to see what potential 2017 brings this unique artist.
Download the album at a very reasonable price of $3 in many different digital formats from Agura Matra's official Bandcamp:
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