We have lost the will to exclude breakcore from our lives. X.nte, from Atlanta, Dirty South, makes obsolete the many years between the last time I bought a Digital Hardcore or Squarepusher CD and this present moment, and holy god it seems like I never should have stopped lining the shelves of my collection with this stuff. “CLOUD2” is a massive headrush, a MASSIVE HEADRUSH, in case lowercase letters didn’t do it for you there. They don’t cut it.
Interspersing remixes of other artists’ material with x.nte’s own, the producer weaves jagged and delirious electronic mayhem, a seemingly never-ending digital environment where we must navigate between EQ stalactites and stalagmites through a subterranean vortex. It’s impossible to loosen my white-knuckled fingers from my armrests – by blood’s pumping, my teeth are grinding in lockjawed intensity, I’m hyperventilating like I’m in the emergency room, I’m sweating through a jacket and two shirts.
I’m the pilot of a pixelated spacecraft dodging enemies and debris in tight quarters. It’s a goddamn exhilarating ride. I think an enormous NES ate me and I can’t tell the difference anymore.
Don’t stop purchasing x.nte’s “CLOUD2” from \\NULL|ZONE// till it’s gone. Edition of 50.
--Ryan Masteller
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