anders ilar - ludwijka 12" review in french from pitchfork media

Swedish minimal house producer Ilar released two full-lengths last year: one was the fine Nightwidth compilation of recent singles, and other this limited edition LP of new material. Named after his hometown in Sweden, Ludwijka is gray-ish, cold music, though like a lot of his more straightforward stuff, has a mysterious edge to it. There are beats here, though they're suffocated and muffled-- not completely unrelated to some of Ilar's more straightforward house stuff, though generally more introverted. The source material for the eight untitled tracks (listed only by their place on vinyl, e.g. "a1", "a2", etc) is actually samples of Ilar's own music, going back to his childhood, so the isolated, insular feel isn't surprising. Nevertheless, even the dead of winter can be evocative: perhaps play this alone, and what seems shadowy and abstract at first becomes mystical, almost precious. - Dominique Leone

back one step