Srmeixner — A Silent War

A Silent War is the fifth album from Srmeixner, which is the solo project of Stephen Meixner of dark electro surrealists Contrastate.  And it’s a heady, though often sinisterly satirizing album that blends of constricting electro texturing, vapid harmonic swim, hoovering new-age ambience, with slurred out vaporwave sensibilities- all topped with moments computer voice uneasy.

The album appeared on Illinois Oxidation- coming presented as a six-track CD release. This comes presented in a mini gatefold, featuring on its front a cyclist riding right by a burning building, and inside texts for the lyrical tracks featured here.

All but one of the albums six tracks run between the six and seven-minute mark. And if I was to compare it to anything I’d say the more swimming, largely beat-less side of Oneohtrix Point Never's more recent out-put, though coming from a more abstract noise/ electro experimental angle of course.

The album moves from rattling ‘n’ woozy electro rattle meets on/off shambling percussion of “Breath”. Which later features the use of the creepy computer voice saying ‘Please I can’t breathe’,  ‘just get off me’ and ‘knee on my neck’, with flourishes of warbling and melted muzak.  Onto the chopping pulse and waving tone glow of “Unfinished Business” with its shifting chopped up-to-morphed sound element toppings, and it's later shift into woozy new age ambient wonkiness/ police shrine tones.  Through to the stretched and melted computer voice tones, ringing and glide texturing meets protest song like spoken word elements of “Singing About Revolution”.

I was familiar with Contrastate past output, but this is my first taster of Srmeixner work- and I must say you can certainly hear the connections with his other projects work. Though A Silent War certainly blends it’s it own darkly satirizing edge, and I’d say if you enjoy experimental electronic woozy and unease- this is something you’ll be wanting to check out.