10.29.19 by Ryan Masteller
It wasn’t that long ago that we introduced the world (well, whatever part of the world regularly clicks on this website’s internet link) to Jollies, the Brooklyn-based electronic tape label, with their inaugural label sampler “Crash Klang Bang Thang” (which was super awesome, in my opinion). I hope we keep getting to introduce people to Jollies, because now that we’ve got this new Reinartz tape, “Interactions,” we’re going to have to double our efforts. (Or at least just make an effort to cover “Interactions” in the first place. Hey, my work here may already be done!)
The Berlin-based producer makes moody, sci-fi electronica/IDM from lovely synth patches that serve as streamlined capsules built for light-speed travel throughout the deepest reaches of the universe. Fun! There’s even a track on “Interactions” called “Sirens of Titan,” and I’m not going to try to cover up my recent relaunch into the works of Kurt Vonnegut (although I haven’t gotten to “Sirens” yet). I’m happy to report that it’s holding up so far, even though I haven’t read a Vonnegut book since college. But Reinartz is like the perfect observational soundtrack for those trips back through retrofuturistic science fiction, where every planet and moon was inhabitable, and hope abounded for the human race. Right? Maybe I’m just too far removed for that concept to be relevant anymore. Maybe I’m old.
Regardless, this whole thing plays like the lights blinking from the console of a personal spacecraft, a tentative rush of adrenaline mixed with fear at the prospect of the future and facing the unknown. Reinartz channels those reservations perfectly, shooting a weird mix of feelings directly into our spinal column like they’re some sort of preventative measure for too much space travel (or something) administered by scientists or physicians who don’t know enough yet to ensure the safety or viability of what they’re dispensing. The element of danger – THAT’S what makes “Interactions” so exhilarating! You have no idea what’s going to happen next.