d'marc cantu/rival: omega red

D'Marc Cantu's second release on Drone is an introspective, emotive piece of electro. With its deep pads, "Omega Red" provides the soundtrack to a trek through the snowy wastes, never letting up and calling through the night. In contrast, under his Rival alias, Cantu delivers "Sustain", a ferocious track with monotonous drum lines that slowly takes you into the night. Rival has, since its inception, been about exploring the limitations of a single, one-take session. Taking the principles of a live set and applying them with gear that would ordinarily be left in the studio adds an uncertainty and urgency.