Starkey’s DJ mix Starkbass opens with a futuristic sci-fi movie introduction, ‘Trouble in Starkville.” This opener sets the scene for the soundtrack to come: a mechanical, teched-out, trance-inducing groove. While the mix plays seamlessly from track to track, if one takes each track on its own, Starkey’s Starkbass is perfectly divided into individual movie scenes. Some scenes are intensely grungy, some more atmospheric, others more traditional Euro-house. However across all track listeners will find dramatically unusual sound effects: twangy flange, huge filter sweeps, radioactive echoes. Frenetic at some points and mellow at others, Starkey’s soundtrack uses tempo and instrumental variation to build tension perfectly in this trancy composition fit for any spacey sci-fi flick.

At times it feels as if the trance will never end, leaving you on the verge of a panic attack, and yet just as you approach the tipping point, the synth morphs or the beat drops and it feels as if everything in the world is right again.

However let me insert a quick disclaimer: Starkbass isn’t for anyone, especially not the mentally instable. This mix is ruthlessly scary, relentlessly ominous. In reality, it’s an act of individual endurance, a chore, to listen to the whole mix, start to finish. But if you’re feeling ambitious and in the mood for experiencing something completely uncommon among most modern music, Starkbass is your epiphany. In terms of musical experimentation, Starkey is on a new level. While it may not be the easiest mix to listen to (stone-cold sober that is), Starkbass is an achievement in musical obscurity.

RELATED POSTS:

No related posts.