The process of sorting through new dance music tracks today is a highly artificial and distorted experience. By and large, it means sitting at a desk or on a couch, alone, with headphones or even shitty laptop speakers playing low resolution samples. Can you think of anything that is less similar than hearing a track rip your head off out of a VOID soundsystem in a club with a 12 foot high LED screen and interactive lights scientifically designed to fuck with your head? Even going to a record store back in the day meant you were around people, including some that potentially knew their shit and could tell you to wait for the remixes or that the break on the 7″ was different than the one you expected to hear that’s only on the ultra-rare 12″ version.
For a lot of tracks this might not matter but for Plastic it does. The seven track techno EP from Lefrenk is made to be played loud and until I did so, and in a group of people, I didn’t really get it. The remixes stood out: Francois Dillinger always crafts tracks with a gleaming hypnotic shine and the remix of “Insen” is no different. Kim Cosmik’s remix of the same track puts on a cinematic, dystopian spin, Adrien d’Elzius does something similarly sinister to “Phrygian” and Pablo Funk’s pass over the title track is a nice one too. And then I went back to the originals and in the proper environment with the right people I think I got it. Lefrenk makes social music, music for big, open spaces — it’s hard to imagine these working in a small room where the space echoes and reverb don’t have the chance to roll out in all their overwrought glory. “Plastic” is a dazzling maze of high, smooth walls and Danielewskian horrors around every wrong turn. The Plastic EP is bursting with inviting vistas and portals to jump through, drawn up by a roster of phenomenally talented artists.
⚪️ Plastic Tracklisting
Lefrenk: Plastic (EC Underground / Digital)
1. Phrygian (05:41)
2. Plastic (05:04)
3. Insen (04:29)
4. Insen (FRANCOIS DILLINGER Remix) (05:21)
5. Insen (Kim Cosmik Remix) (05:27)
6. Phrygian (Adrien d'Elzius Remix) (06:52)
7. Plastic (Pablo Funk Remix) (04:46)
⚪️ Disclosure Statement
This record was submitted as a promo.
5 Mag Issue 208
Out July 2023
WE STILL CALL IT HOUSE: This was originally published in 5 Mag Issue #208 featuring the story of Chicago house music collective 3 Degrees Global, a tribute to DJ Deeon, a cover mix by and profile of Gratts, Detroit vocalist Diviniti, John Davis of the disco’s scariest orchestra, the great vanishing of pirate sites more. Help keep our vibe alive by becoming a member for $2/month and get every issue in your inbox right away!
