The conceptual imagining of time is inherently a cinematic exercise. Moments in time are unique and fleeting – no two instances are alike, each fated for a divergence of what already exists. There are thus networks of possibilities within our reach that spiral towards the edges of existence.
Oroboro captures this essence of the infinity on his latest release for LA-based label TAR. Entitled A Clockwork Existence, the 3-track EP leads us to experience the grandiosity of time with the most calculated attention to intricate sonic details. Oroboro designs the minutiae of each production with such care that the listener feels every perceptual shift acutely. This state of constant flux reflects the fragility of our own place (or sense of self) within the spacetime continuum.
On A Clockwork Existence, the details amalgamate to create vast worldscapes. The listener is thrown into various environments expressed through the arrangement and layering of complex rhythmic patterns. The three exciting experiments here are eventful arcs which shake the listener’s sense of time.
A sense of perpetuity looms as Oroboro employs mechanisms of repetition, specifically familiar dance music time signatures, as a device to guide the listeners towards an opaque inevitability. Insofar as the final destination is never clear to us until the very last note, the project is best experienced by relinquishing all urges for prediction and control. Oroboro is the maestro here, painting deeply vivid textural landscapes with dizzying percussive palettes and expansive synths. A Clockwork Existence is an immensely rewarding three-track thriller that feels larger than life in its scale and execution.
by Oscar Chiu.
A Clockwork Existence is out now on TAR. Download it here.