- The breadth of Russia’s underground electronic scene makes delving into it a daunting task. DIY collectives like John’s Kingdom are borrowing from Western influences and try to bring worldwide attention to the largely neglected scene. It was on this label where Moscow’s Kedr Livanskiy first appeared in 2016 with her debut EP January Sun. Since then she has emerged as one of the faces of the bourgeoning scene.
In 2017 she released her breakout debut full-length, Ariadna. Having been born just before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, her music recalled the wintery bleakness of legendary Russian band Kino. Her ethereal vocals drifted over dark minimalist production for two rather melancholic projects, but following the release of Ariadna, Livaskiy found herself in a creative rut. Feeling trapped in her own image, DJing became a catalyst for a change of direction and it shifted her inspiration to a range of old school styles of dance music. This bring us to her sophomore album: Your Need.
Lead single Kiska provided the first taste of this new direction. Combining tribal percussion loops, hypnotic vocal samples, and unnerving synths, the track is reminiscent of Greek electronic pioneer Lena Platonos. However, with the release of the next two singles, it became clear the Kiska was by no means an overarching representation of the album’s ultimate sound.
The production across the record maintains the minimalism of her previous work, but it’s also extremely stylistically varied, helping it sound fresh on repeat listens, despite its short runtime. It effortlessly switches styles with deep house cuts like Your Need (Deep Mix), the dub track Lugovoy (November Dub) and the breakbeat closer New Day, which has a real triumphant and rambunctious energy, making it one of the highpoints of the album.
A generally brighter soundscape separates this album from Livanskiy’s previous work and this approach yields a number of earworms. UK garage-inspired track Sky Kisses has taken up residence in my head since its release and it doesn’t seem too keen on leaving any time soon. Another refreshing change comes by virtue of the passionate vocal performances towards the end of this album. While Livanskiy has offered us these in the past, they were always mixed too low to be fully appreciated.
It must be said, this album isn’t without weak moments. The opening track is a bit directionless and tedious, not offering any real pay-off. The same can be said for the track Why Love. Minor complaints aside, though, this record is, at its best, irresistibly catchy, and an exciting move away from Livanskiy’s previous work. It’s also very impressive how so many styles of early electronic music are collaged into one neat little half-hour package. Your Need is an important step forward for Livanskiy personally, and hopefully it’s a sign of things to come from the underground Russian electronic scene. Having Livanskiy at the forefront of that scene is, at the very least, a great start.
- Jack Jones.