Having enjoyed support from 6 Music’s Gideon Coe, Nick Luscombe (Resonance FM) & others on last year’s album Farrago, Alan Starck returns with a 2 EP set – the cryptically technical Electrica EP & the happily joyful & funky Funner EP. Both bodies of work collectively push Doctor Starck’s stellar envelope into hyperdrive using soundscapes that Captain Kirk would be proud of.

Kicking off with the Electrica EP is The Waning Gibbous – a track reminiscent of the Cat Stevens/JellyBean Benitez track Was Dog A Doughnut with it’s creeping beat, delicately spiced with ethereal pads, occasional vocal samples & subtle arpeggios.

Other key tracks from Electrica are: Happy Days with its Tricky–esque beat & ominously dark intro pad, soon replaced by kazoo & animal like synth bleats, FlufferDuffer with its enveloped FX intro & tight percussive sounds & the finish Acid Memoirs with it’s bubbling syncopated bass arpeggios – a hark back to the early days of the 303 bassline that abruptly stops before the sequencer marches off in double-time like the doctor’s prescribed the wrong medicine.

Moving on – The Funner EP leads with It’s Easy – a funky laid-back beat shoulders time-signature changes midway & vocoded vocal samples that float throughout this good-natured yet quizzical track.

Also check out Dad’s Instruments that commands your attention from the outset using funk guitar samples, pumped through a Troublefunk groove charismatically constructed over a crucial baseline loaded with live instruments & percussion. This said sonic soup slides subliminally into Dawn Amour’s funky beat, portmento chords & boogalicious synthline’s before the EP culminating in Linedance Lovers; an ode to the Hoe-down that takes a leaf out of Mr.Scruff’s rule book on vocal splicing to forge a surround-sound soufflé.

Overall a charming set of ideas from this musical maverick/doctor & a welcome addition to the Ominim catalogue. Alan is due to play a handful of live shows thanks to his agency – Beat Unique including West London’s lovable latrine; Ginglik to celebrate the release – See you there.

Relevant links:
www.myspace.com/alanstarck
www.alanstarck.com