Bleep

The dust is still settling on their 2019 LP The Bittereinders, but Daedelus has wasted no time with the follow-up. One look at the tracklisting for their new effort What Wands Won’t Work indicates that the IDM overlord has played things fast and loose here - What Wands Won’t Work runs to more than double the amount of tracks than its predecessor.

Whereas The Bittereinders was a ruminative and impressionistic record, What Wands Won’t Work finds Daedelus returning in a way to the zany, energetic brand of electronics with which many associate them. Tracks don’t stay still here, the beats often burning themselves out quickly (only one cut clocks in at more than three-and-a-half minutes, and then only by two seconds). Furthermore, the mixes here are notably more raw than they were on The Bittereinders - indeed, more than they have been on many Daedelus’ records.

All of this aids the feeling of an artist throwing caution to the wind. At the core of What Wands Won’t Work is the same sensibility that has guided so much of Daedelus’ output down the years, a sort of fevered and zany take on breakcore, IDM and other 90s electronic styles. However, the record also feels more torrid than many other Daedelus releases, with melody largely done away with in favour of contorted, visceral rhythms. The record also shows signs that Daedelus is paying attention to recent club trends - cuts like ‘Cauldron’. ‘Drubbing’ and ‘Fettle’ feature driving polyrhythms which nod to labels like Fade To Mind while the relatively lo-fi production style echoes the gritty beats of L.I.E.S..

Daedelus’ new LP What Wands Won’t Work is rough and ready and surely one of the most arresting records in their lengthy discography.