Juxtapositions

A collaboration album by DiN label boss Ian Boddy and Scanner

Scanner (UK musician Robin Rimbaud) has previously released two solo albums on the DiN imprint, namely An Ascent (DiN63) and The Homeland of Electricity (DiN72), as well as being included on several of the label’s compilation albums. He also performed alongside label boss Ian Boddy at the Subliminal Impulse festival in Manchester back in 2022, and although this concert was well received, the duo didn’t take their collaborative efforts further at that time. However, here we are four years down the line, and this pair of renowned musicians have finally combined their multitude of talents on Juxtapositions.

In many ways, both Boddy and Rimbaud operate in different sound worlds, but such diversity is often the catalyst for the best form of musical collaboration. The nine tracks on the album gently oscillate between hypnotic cycling patterns and nebulous, ambient soundscapes. The music plays as a continuous suite of tracks, which segue into each other and create a dream-like journey that constantly shifts the listener’s focus. Interspersed with field recordings from old houses and reverberant cellars, as well as Rimbaud’s signature radio chatter, the music is both abstract and emotive. The concept of deep listening is well known to the electronic music fraternity, and certainly, this album will benefit greatly from such an approach, as this will unveil its delicate beauty and hidden depths.

Over the course of the DiN label’s extensive catalogue, Boddy has collaborated with many diverse musicians. With this release, once again, such musical connections between different sonic voices has produced an album of outstanding quality.