SOCCER96 - Rewind (2018)

‘Rewind’ is the latest release from enigmatic synth and drums duo Soccer96, comprised of Danalogue [Dan Leavers] and Betamax [Max Hallett], following their acclaimed 2016 album ‘As Above So Below’. With a nod to the beat tape aesthetic, 'Rewind' is a collection of newly discovered reel to reel recordings, live mixed on a vintage ‘Alice’ mixing desk in the Soccer96 analogue lab.

Also known for performing in and producing Mercury Prize nominated group ‘The Comet Is Coming’ [alongside Shabaka Hutchings], Danalogue & Betamax are two of the most in demand producers and instrumentalists on the reignited London cosmic jazz scene. Danalogue has recently produced records from Vels Trio, Snapped Ankles and Alabaster DePlume as well as collaborating with Sarathy Korwar, Leafcutter John and Idris Rahman at the Basquiat Video Jam concert at the Barbican. Hallett, further to being a member of groups Super Best Friends Club and Hot Head Show, has played drums with high profile acts such as Boredoms, Melt Yourself Down, Sons of Kemet & Yussef Kamaal.

Seamlessly segueing from polyrythmic psychedelic grooves to ambient synth pieces haunted by moments of mysterious tape bleed, 'Rewind' is a surreal, archaeological dig of a record, drenched in the sounds of degraded tape and analogue subtlety. Tracks such as ‘Alice’ contain the ghost of lost drum recordings, audible if you listen hard enough to the tape bleed whilst elsewhere unknown sounds from tapes found in a junk shop were faded into the mix, creating a glimpse into lost memories. Their experiments with tape are to some extent reminiscent of trailblazers such as This Heat and Can but the sweeping, sentimental synth pads and disjointed beats on tracks like 'Harmonious Monk' and 'The Scribe' nod more to the psychedelic/jazz infused grooves of the West Coast beat scene.

The duo are joined by the curious vocalist and synth player Fred Stidson on two tracks, 'Time Flows', a dreamy ethereal piece with a lilting vocal, and 'The Future', a trippy arrangement driven by broken beats and squealing lead synths. The record ends with a brilliant Hello Skinny remix of 'Constellation', a track from Soccer’s 2014 EP 'Jupiter Masterdrive', a remix done in secret that was only heard years later, and instantly loved so much by the band that it had to be added to the record.

Rewind is very much a record shaped by its process, combining intentional with unintentional, live instrumentation with concrete sound, lost recordings with a newfound mixing style, order and chaos.