- Symbol is just one arm of what feels like an endless stream of series and projects coming out of James Clements' self-helmed Auxiliary Records. It's the most experimental of his offerings—electronic music not tied down to any one tempo or sound. The third in the series is the first from an outside artist, English drum & bass producer Sam KDC, and it's the best example of Symbol's potential yet.
What seems to set KDC apart from ASC is his willingness to go for the obvious chord progressions and melodic resolutions that Clements might shy away from. The tendency is undeniably successful here; the moment when the clustered beats fall away in "Symbol #3.1" to reveal an aching chord progression emerging from beneath layers of silt and grit doesn't get any less spine-tingling with familiarity. "Symbol 3.2" plays on the same dnb-not-dnb rhythmic precision as the first, turning static into a percussive framework of microscopic proportions. The EP's best track is its briefest, KDC isolating the pleasure-centre aspect of his sound: "Symbol #3.3" is three minutes of repeating chords, recalling Eno's legendary "An Ending (Ascent)" in its paradoxically riveting stasis and cinematic grandiosity.
Tracklist A1 Symbol #3.1 (Part 1)
A2 Symbol #3.1 (Part 2)
B Symbol #3.2