Alright, I think to round off this series of articles about Ex-Terrestrial and co, I cannot skip on Priori. I mentioned him in my article about Ex-Terrestrial on Monday, as his interview revealed he was relying on Priori mastering skills for virtually all of his tracks, citing him as a proper scientist with deeply cultivated intuition. I first learned of Priori through his SCN EP, which Spotify radio started playing after I played some JOULE records; which is quite on-point for a recommendation I must say!

Priori - SCN 3 (2020)

I must say this and his early releases (for instance Anform) really fit this micro / dub house genre which is so characteristic of JOULE and Yoyaku in general. I am a sucker for this genre, these tracks tend to be so nicely produced, round and soft, perfect for warming up. They of course tend to soon sound too similar to each other, but as anything this delicate it should be consumed with moderation.

Yet; this is far from what I want to highlight from Priori. The track of the day today comes from his album called On a Nimbus, which he released last year. I can hardly say it better than the discogs user sunshine-recoder; so lemme quote here his review of the album:

absolutely incredible album showing the depth and breadth of Priori's repertoire as a producer. there's a common trope that dance music doesn't work in an album format, and most of the time i would be inclined to agree, but this record is an exception. from end to end there's this beautiful feeling of weightlessness. the record clearly draws from the rich heritage of dance music of many different veins but it doesn't feel or sound derivative. acid lines zip like insects across a meadow, breakbeats unfurl like a rocket casting away it's thrusters, climbing through the atmosphere. cool, icy pads drift like clouds in an unhurried way. it's an album that really takes that feeling of excitement and curiosity, that sense of wonder and discovery and distills it into something brilliant

By now you should be convinced you need to give this album a go, but if you need more persuading, press play on my pick from this album: Afterburn.

Priori - Afterburn (2020)

This track… where to even start? The deep ambient pad of the beginning and bubbling sounds, the lazer shots followed by the deepest of kicks, temporally smeared, enough to work your sub hard. The track slowly builds, random glitchy layers starting to form unexpected grooves. When the drum starts at 02:50, it feels like a locomotive, dragging us forward. The rest is pure bliss, as all these layers somehow make sense. I dig it so much that the break, when all the pressure releases, sounds like whales calling in from a far away ocean. Such an outlandish, extraordinary build-up for these underwater sounds. I can really understand the scientist part after listening to this production, god damn. Priori, I love your music and so should you, the person reading me.