It’s hard to go to an EDM festival without seizuring from strobe lights, going deaf from pulsing beats, or popping too many Mollies. Electronica combusts acres of energy, leaving no breathing room. This genre of trebley arpeggios, never-ending grooves, and overwhelming bass deserves a relaxing vacation.
Artists like Actress, Flying Lotus, and Jon Hopkins are soothing alternatives for EDM, infusing jazzy annunciations and new age ambience into hypnotic dance compositions. Producer Gypsy Eyes follows alongside them with the electro-nirvana of The Escapist.
Chimes play a big role in Gypsy Eye’s debut album. On “Little Terrors,” timid wind chimes and audio samples of children playing hover over a glitchy beat that shifts between post-punk and drum and bass. “Finger Paint,” another chime-heavy track, conjures the feeling of being indoors on a rainy summer afternoon. Gypsy Eyes blends other sub-genres of EDM, like with the harsh noise-inspired “Splintered Cerebellum.”
I was disappointed by how some songs were about a minute long, making The Escapist resemble a library music compilation. However, I do thank Gypsy Eyes for the peaceful trance he put me in for just over 30 minutes.