The World Next Door - Chaotic Mixing

 Released: May 2 

Despite the name, Chaotic Mixing is actually a fantastically calming album through and through. It was predominantly made with a single acoustic guitar with a great deal of help from the intricate effect chains of Ableton. And it’s here where the title comes into play. With the soothing and gentle plucks and strums of the guitar, the after effects of the organic sounds are manipulated and mixing into a beautiful controlled chaos. But even as these effects become more prominent, the original guitar sounds are never fully drowned out and the pervasive sound manipulations morph into a kind of strange accompaniment to the folk inspired guitar work. I think “Fluid Filaments” is really the best example of this with the gentle echoes of the guitar converted into soft pads and ambient noises that stand in compliment to the masterfully panned guitar to really fill up the stereo field in a engaging and creative way. 

There are even a few tracks that veer away from his solo guitar approach, most notably “Active Agitator,” which is one of the few tracks here that prominently feature some kind of drums. It’s a weird vibe for me as it kind of reminds me of the point in rock and alternative type music somewhere around the early 2000s in which a lot of bands were trying to do that slowed-down and heartfelt acoustic trend. But it incorporates a lot of overdubs as well as opposed to just a single guitar, giving it that, well, slightly chaotic feeling. While I did appreciate the variety that this and the other drum driven tracks bring, it also felt like they papered over some of the neat subtleties that the tracks without drums contained. I think this was because the tracks without drums give a lot of space for the guitar and the effects that are placed on it to really breathe. 

All in all, the album is quite enjoyable. It has a somewhat new age vibe to it, making it great for those little quiet moments. But its folk and electronic influences are undeniable as well and I think the album really excels in those more subtle moments. However, the moments in which there is just a bit too much going on lose a lot of those subtleties and I personally found these a bit distracting.