Remixes are a supremely interesting player in the EDM game. They offer everything from slight variations on a fan-favourite to becoming the definitive fan-favourite in their own right. With Elephant Skeletons‘ “The Lamp” as a springboard, psychedelic-electronic artist Fractal Code, aka Cody Martin, definitely has the tools to find himself in either category.
Martin’s first half of the remix, distinct from the original track, is where the tune is at its strongest, featuring a hypnotic swirl of bells and frequencies, gently guided by a progressively more intense drum beat. I dare say it echoes the quieter discography of artists like deadmau5 or Austin Collins, specifically of tunes like “A Moment To Myself” or “Myst.”
Four and a half minutes worth of the first half would have been a surefire way to leave listeners tickled pink, and could very well have been its very own original tune, no remix label necessary. The second half is where the “remix” part of the remix becomes much more apparent.
Martin slides into that latter half with a big crowd-mover. We’re greeted to a funky, fast-paced combination of strings and percussion, with an intensity akin to a soundtrack of a top-secret mission of sorts, with just enough of a psychedelic kick to remind us that Fractal Code is the mastermind here.
The final stretch of the tune doesn’t quite leave us on a high note. While it certainly isn’t bad, the sweeping gusto of it doesn’t exactly compare to the brilliance of the track’s opening salvo. The lead-up elements are still present but become overpowered by a very loud, horn-like noise akin to an elephant. The volume alone is a bit much, and the notation isn’t particularly dynamic, resulting in a bit of a loud drone to end us off with, punctuating the jarring presence of the more fast-paced parts of the remix.
Fractal Code’s remix of Elephant Skeletons’ “The Lamp” showed many, many sides to the artist; the lax, trance-inducing side, the rapid-fire, suave side, and the loud, towering side, chronologically speaking. With the highlight (and by golly, was it a great highlight) of the remix being the part that sounded like a tune of its own, Martin proves that he’s more than capable of weaving a myriad of great tunes.