Electronic: Kingbastard - Tied Up to Machines (2009)

73 / 100

Tied Up to Machines stands as a clever and playful snapshot of electronic culture in transition, blending some genres into a coherent conceptual EP.

Alright, as I mentioned earlier, I am now moving on to an EP released back in April 2009, Tied Up to Machines by Kingbastard.

This seven-track EP feels like an interpretation of an era becoming increasingly modern through the chronological use of electronic devices. For example, it starts with cassette playback on “Boombox,” which also features a collaboration with Proliffix—and ah… it suddenly reminds me of that The Simpsons meme where a group of people carry boombox radio, clearly signaling a shift in that era, reinforced here by hip-hop–styled vocals. This is followed by the 8-bit gaming era on “F47G4M3R,” and the birth of Captcha, rendered in a glitchy IDM style on “The Captcha.” The interlude “4M813N7RK” is filled with what feels like the glow of neon lights, fitting perfectly with the EP’s overall atmosphere.

The relentless sounds of machines are churned into a complex, funky composition on “The Secret Life of Machines.” Vocals return on the final two tracks, and unfortunately I do not quite grasp “1M4GTRGUY,” so I think it is fine not to elaborate on that one. “Say When” closes the EP with an eight-minute duration and a well-built structure: starting with electropop wrapped in chiptune and turntable scratching, falling into a fairly long silence, then erupting into groovy arcade-style game music from the sixth minute until the end.

There is actually a brief explanation of what each track contains, along with some reviews included in the Bandcamp description of this EP, but it does not feel ethical to copy and paste that here. In short, Tied Up to Machines by Kingbastard is recommended for fans of Plaid, Aphex Twin, Prefuse 73, and the like. As for me, I appreciate it quite a bit and still cannot decide which track is the best—though if I had to choose, it would probably be “Say When.”