Courtesy - Violence of the Moodboard
In light of Courtesy's appearance on the Line Noise podcast in April of 2022 with host Ben Cardew, the duo unpick Courtesy's up-and-coming projects and discuss the finer points of dance music, emphasising trance while revealing her thoughts and contemplations regarding her first release Night Journeys, the 2022 ambient trance EP, a deep journey into the beatless ambient landscape of post-trance, combining delicate accompaniments of harmonised vocals and piano melodies, released on her very own Kulør label. Fast forwarding to April 2023, Courtesy's second ambient trance drop, Violence of the Moodboard (2023), is a more cohesive and, in many ways, heartfelt concentration of ideas first explored on Night Journeys.
Courtesy constructs a kaleidoscope of white-hot arpeggiated sequences that intertwine countlessly. Endless emotional expression is captured within the three-track EP, with a large portion of that being down to the beauty of the record's simplicity. Not bogged down with excessive sound design tricks or 1001 musical embellishments, Courtesy instead finds a balance between taking simple musical phrases to the ends of creativity. Courtesy pushes, pulls, and contorts carefully considered melodies, revealing near-limitless originality within such a narrow set of parameters. For example, 'Violence of the Moodboard' is a stunningly creative track that exemplifies the "standing fast" mentality, full of movement yet remaining stationary, allowing the storytelling to become reflective and internal, offering a slice-of-life. Heavy low-end arpeggios propel the sense of speed at the same time, acidic lines interlaced with the hum of pads engulf the spaces in between, dropping out too awash of minimalist atmospheres with twinkling flourishes scattered like stars.
Courtesy demonstrates an enthrallment with emotion epitomised by 'Hearts' that becomes the epicentre. 'Hearts' is the most emotionally engaging of the three through its use of saturated arpeggios doubling as biological electrical pulses, the life force of the record. Courtesy intertwines this with a lead melody that cuts deep into the psyche, penetrating with both a catchy melody and its undeniable raw energy. Melancholic waves rush over as deep basses rumble flanked by haunting strings as love and loss evolve significantly within 'Hearts' with singular melodic expressions presented as entirely alone. Dashes of cosmic dust and the final track, 'AW23', as the melody plays against counter melody, an exquisite waltz of shifting energies. Auditory interest is generated by enthralling waves of complexity born from continually moving resonances that elevate the experience to new heights of magnificence. Tsunami's colours roll over the track, and waves of excitement cascade and subside into calming ambient phrases. This style of melodic beatless ambient music pays homage to other forms of electronic expression. It is growing in notoriety and appeal, with artists such as Caterina Barbieri, Koreless and SSIEGE being some more names to explore the genre truly.
Tracklist:
Violence of the Moodboard
Hearts
AW23
Label: Kulør (2023)
Courtesy - Violence of the Moodboard
