Q&A

After a four-year hiatus, Cornel Wilczek (aka Qua) returned to the electronica world with a pair of albums under his belt. The first, Silver Red, was an ambient outing that featured Qua and a drummer loosely improvising over a midi composition. The other, Q&A, was its polar opposite, a meticulously constructed digital dance party. For this one, the more cohesive of the two, Qua’s careful attention to sonic detail shines. Over the course of each track, sections shift textures seamlessly as he colors the backgrounds of his 3-D canvas with a vast keybank of sounds. At the forefront, fragmented blips and warm, gurgling analog synths nod to the usual Kraut and electro touchstones, while smashing beats are chopped in stride with Wilczek’s modern-day, trendsetting peers (and sometime tourmates) Ratatat, Bibio, and Clark. Even though Q&A is severely dense, and piled high with synthesized tones, things never sound overly processed or too cluttered. Along with muted guitars and some disco fuzz bass, drum work by Laurenz Pike (Pivot, Triosk, Savath + Savalas), and James Cecil (Architecture in Helsinki) gives the album a live edge. "Circles" thrashes about aimlessly around a sea of arpeggiated keys and vocoded alien sighs. With "Goodmorning Sun," a recurring theme develops. The five following tracks each have their own unique qualities, but play like one congruent piece, ultimately locking and building into "Yes Sir, No Sir," a bouncy club groove that sounds like a Justice remix of Jan Hammer. Moments like these are sure to set a party in motion, while "Evening Bell" closes the shuttle doors and winds down in a soothing Music for Airports vibe.