CD, Hands Productions, 2009
www.anginap.com
“Sensitive Files” kicks off with “I Break Your Beats” which gives the listener a fairly good idea of what they are in for. Angina P produces whimsical melodic breakbeat with IDM sentiments. Sort of reminescent of Mouse On Mars except with breaks.
The production is generally clean, although some of the breaks retain a gritty undertone (which is good, gives it sort of a subtle rawness), and never overpowering. I’m not hugely familiar with breaks, but I know that the style can produce tracks that are quite linear and boring, and I’m happy to say this is neither. The tracks here are nice and complex; there are tons of broken beats, upbeat breaks, beeps and clicks harping along on their merry way. There are subtle and beautiful melodies dispersed throughout each piece, guiding them along and providing some guidance for the imagery that will inevitably populate your head upon listening (they’re of the dreamy, emotive melody type for which I am a huge fan). The bass is note hugely present but it fits into its minute niche and, when present, compliments the structure of the tracks appropriately. I feel the lack of bass, interestingly enough, gives the tracks a sharp and futuristic feel, which sort of makes no sense in writing – but it’s a good thing, I think. Towards the end of the album, starting with “Stand Alone Unit”, things start to slow down and we are treated to distant, ambient atmospheres with the occasional break / broken beat. The record was starting to get repetitious so this was a smart move. I like these ambient-ish tracks a lot and it’s a good way to wind down the record, although I’m on the fence as to whether these should have be interspersed to vary up the album a bit (though maybe that could have actually ruined the overall flow).
The only downside to “Sensitive Files” is that most of the tracks use almost the exact same formula so it can start to feel a bit repetitive – we basically get 11 tracks of melodic breakbeat with IDM influence. It’s definitely a cool style, but after a few tracks I start to lose interest because it feels like I’ve kind of been hearing the same thing for 30 minutes straight. Things begin to shift by track 7 but this is a bit too deep into the record.
Anyway this critique sounds harsher than it actually is; it’s a good record, I swear. Prior to this I had heard nothing from Angina P, but after hearing this record I am inspired to check out her past and hopefully future works. If you like older-IDM, breaks and melody then check this out.
[7.5/10]
— Dan Barrett