Artist: Deadmau5
Album: while(1<2)
Release Date: 17 June 2014
Reviewer: Drew Dittmann – Director of Hip-Hop/RPM/Electronica
Review Date: 18 July 2014
Deadmau5’s seventh studio album, while (1<2) proves he is a continuing pioneer in the electronic music community. This album is a two-disc, 25 track departure from his previous sound. Starting out in the Vancouver electronic scene in the middle 2000’s, Deadmau5 (Joel Zimmerman) made a name for himself with his eclectic and melodic, genre-mashing progressive, electro, and tech house sound, achieving mainstream success in 2007 (Link).
while (1<2) once again demonstrates Zimmerman’s inability to stagnate. Songs on the album such as “Silent Picture” and “Invidia” are downtempo and instrumental, featuring acoustic guitar and piano, respectively, whereas “Infra Turbo Pigcart Racer” and “Phantoms Can’t Hang” seem reminiscent of Daft Punk’s Tron: Legacy soundtrack with their vivid, shimmering, and fast-paced beats. And Deadmau5 even forays into the IDM scene with tracks like “Creep” and “Errors In My Bread” reminding listeners of the genre-defining Autechre.
In a recent interview Zimmerman stated that the departure was made possible in large part because his contract with Ultra Records expired (Deadmau5 has since signed a contract with Astralwerks and continues to release material on his own label mau5trap records). “Ultra Records was more interested in Ultra Records being the f***ing rockstar,” he said. “Now, I feel like I can do what I want, and not like I’m a factory worker making parts of a car I don’t get to drive,” (Link). I must say that what’s good for the Mau5 is good for his fans too, because the continuing development of Deadmau5’s sound is exciting to hear. If you’re interested in witnessing progress and change as it occurs, tune into Deadmau5’s live streams and listen to him on SoundCloud, where he open posts works-in-progress.