Zero Gold

Belgian artist Pole Folder emerged - some would say erupted - upon the European dance scene with his now-seminal 2002 release `Dust,' a powerhouse breakbeat track highlighted by John Digweed's mix CD *MMII*. From then on his songs have regularly topped DJ set lists, the lush atmospherics and dirty grooves of said compositions providing excellent material for both building up tension & reaching peak-time release. Over the past three years Pole Folder has chalked up an impressive resume of traditional progressive house/breakbeat compositions; but in the privacy of his home studio in Brussels, far from the demands of the dance floor, the artist has crafted a personal statement about the human condition and its myriad trials, ignoring the rules and regulations of the club ethic and producing a genuine masterpiece of electronic sound. *Zero Gold,* the first album released on the Bedrock imprint, hit the shelves in May 2005 encased in a sleek package and trumpeted by voluminous hype: judging by online forums, this CD carried all the expectations and backlash-potential of Sasha's 2002 *Airdrawndagger*.

Hype aside, this album delivers exactly what it intends, staying true to Pole Folder's production technique - impossibly lush pads, complex rhythms, a slightly experimental edge to traditional mores - all the while enhancing the soundscapes with organic instruments, appropriate vocals and pop elements. This is the sound that Bt tried - and only marginally succeeded - with *Emotional Technology*. Wherein that album drowned in overproduction and occasionally stunk with rancid cheese, *Zero Gold* keeps to an even keel, each song flowing into the other with an ease that belies the massive amount of work that went into it. Overall the album sounds almost effortless, simultaneously so familiar and yet startlingly new.

*Zero Gold* opens with a sound sample from Pole Folder's very first release, `Apollo Vibes', creating a bridge from past productions to the artist album. A sharp tinny snare crashes out of the stormy ambience, followed by a looped acoustic guitar riff and the gorgeous vocal of Shelly Harland. This first track, `Abrasion', reveals the Pole Folder method and the intent of the album as a whole. "We're always trippin' over the mistakes we make...open your eyes, open your heart - even the love you hold could cause abrasion." Cheesy? Well, possibly. Yet the manipulation of the vox and the sexy groove, when coupled with the climatic pads, make this track my favorite on the album and, subjectively, one of the best pop/electronica fusions ever committed to digital. The next track is almost as good: `Waterfalls of Love' continues the theme of relationship woes, the sexual undertones propelled by a chugging riff and threaded through with a vast array of sound f/x.

`Salvation on Slavery Sins' rides a deep, infectious bass throughout its industrial build, and is unmistakably the core dancefloor track on the album. Near the end a cacophony of electronic guitar notes surge and seethe through the snarling rhythms, climaxing the hypnotic groove before it fades into oblivion. `Scared to Lose' is just as catchy, though the lyrics - self-doubt and perseverance - give it an odd juxtaposition. The song bursts into an unabashed synth peak worthy of Vangelis as climax, strange horns flowing through evocative ambience. From this gentle decline rolls in my second favorite track on the album, `Inner Turmoil.' A busy breakbeat is quickly layered with all sorts of melodic lines, squeaks and gurgles; the breakdown builds the tension; and Pink Floyd-ish guitar dynamics soar and sear at the climax, making the title of the track more than appropriate. The dark 4/4 industrial ambience of `London' rises out of the apocalyptic residue, slightly reworked from its previous single release, and improved in my opinion. `Fall in Violet', a slow and ethereal counterpoint, gives a nice contrast but is probably my least favorite track on the album - only here does it feel as if the ideas are not quite finished.

`Morning Crow' brings back the darker focus, its initial ruminations on death and mysticism foreshadowing the explosive quality of this dancefloor stormer. At the conclusion, a lone melody drifts through moody atmospherics, tapering lazily off to a repetitious record-skip sampled from Pink Floyd's `Wish You Were Here.' The record-skip becomes a rhythmic motif, underscoring the co-dependency & artistic angst of `Faith in Me.' Built around Kristy Hawkshaw's wonderful vox, the song has a peaceful quality, stripped of the album's previous sonic complexities and all the more strong because of it. Out of the ether surges the cinematic finale to *Zero Gold*, the uptempo `Before it All Changes.' Stirring synths cascade around a tough beat; the extended breakdown both raises the tension and pays homage to the artist's influences; and the climax caps the album off majestically.

Pole Folder intentionally made *Zero Gold* 58:59 minutes long, to capture the `preferred' attention span of human beings and to escape ponderous over-indulgence; indeed, the album almost feels *too* short, and the only option left to the listener after the last rhythm fades is to reach out and press play, and experience this sonic journey all over again. *Zero Gold,* though out for less than a month as I write this, is (to my mind) already an instant classic for the electronica scene, to be placed alongside the seminal efforts of Leftfield, Hybrid, early Bt and Way Out West.

Highest Recommendation.

Definitely worth all the hype it has gotten. Almost a pure masterpiece. And I'm a general skeptic about progressive trance/house music. Reason being I feel it's just so mass produced. Producers slap a 4/4 beat on a 9 minute long track, introduce 4 elements into the mix, add a synth, and call it progressive. I'd say that's regressive and the only thing keeping it from being techno is the trancey synth.

This being stated, this album certainly breaks from the mold of mass-marketed, mass-produced progressive music. This album screams atmosphere from every nook, cranny, rivet, and reverb. The vocals that are in this are very minimal, only there to appeal to the atmoshpere. Haunting echoes, a completely icey, spacey vibe is just set throughout this album.

My only fault (and I guess someone could chop this up to creative pioneering) is that the album doesn't flow as well as I thought it should. Kind of choppy transitions, and very choppy at some points. It will go from haunting echoes to a heavy, dirty house beat with a female vocalist thrown in without any real follow-in. Leaving me to question was this a dj mix, or just a compilation of tracks.

But, that really doesn't detract too much from the absolute brilliance of this album. It sets an atmosphere, which is what a progressive record needs to do since they aren't meant for filling the dancefloor.

Pick this up!

This has got to be my favorite album of the year so far. I have a sneaking suspicion that it might actually become one of my favorite albums of all times. It's virtually flawless - every track delivers so much in terms of mood, style and sound. My favorite track as of now is definitely "Fall In Violet" featuring the angelic vocals of Shelley Harland. It's an absolute beauty and really does a number on my senses with its multilayered beat and delicate piano melodies. The only problem (if you even want to call it that) is that it tends to sound a little slow directly after the previous track, "London," which is very fast and racy. This is why I'd suggest listening to "Fall In Violet" on its own, even though it's essential to listen to the album from start to finish at least once to get the full effect.

Other highlights include "Waterfalls of Love" which is one of the most unusual pieces of music I've ever heard, the down-tempo "Faith in Me" featuring Kirsty Hawkshaw, and the intense "Morning Crow" which is possibly the darkest track on the album. EVERY song is amazing and will blow you away if you take the time to listen carefully.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 9 reviews  4.7 out of 5 stars