Kotra – Radness Methods (Album – Prostir)
Genre/Influences: Industrial, Minimal-Electro.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: Ukrainian Dmytro Fedorenko has been active for numerous years now. He has been involved with different projects -you for sure know Cluster Lizard but is mainly releasing his work under the Kotra moniker. This new work is inspired by ‘ancient ideas of ritual drum music and rhythmic meditation techniques’.
Content: Kotra deals with a very personal sound which is mixing Industrial influences together with icy, electronic sound treatments. The coldness of the sound has something remixing me to The Klinik. I also noticed a few Experimental aspects. All tracks are instrumentals.
+ + + : The album reveals 7 songs which is a magical number in alchemy. And this work has something of alchemy in the way Fedorenko manipulates sounds and noises creating an incredibly unique, icy sound. The sounds have something metallic on top which makes it only sound colder. The Industrial rhythms inject power while accentuating the global darkness of the production. I like the minimalism of this production resulting in brilliant songs. I also have to say a word about the sober but intriguing artwork which is totally matching with the music.
– – – : The Experimental touch isn’t my favorite element of the work but it sounds in the background of the total production.
Conclusion: Kotra is based in Berlin (Germany) which remains a visionary city when it comes to music and that’s an aspect -next to the artist’s talent, you simply feel emerging at this work.
Best songs: “Phase Transitions”, “Assemblage Tremor”, “The Virtue Of Consistency” “Quantum Presence”.
Rate: 8.
Artist: https://kotra.org.ua / www.facebook.com/kotra.artist
Label: https://prostir.art / www.facebook.com/prostir.art
“Radness Methods” was released on 7 April 2022 through Prostir. Fedorenko wrote and recorded the album in Berlin in 2021 and made the artwork, Zavoloka handled the design and Noel Summerville mastered the release.
Listen to “Radness Methods”:
About Kotra
Kotra is the main solo alias of Ukrainian electronic musician Dmytro Fedorenko, who is based in Berlin. The project works with industrial rhythm, noise manipulation and icy minimal-electro treatments, largely instrumental. His releases have appeared through Kvitnu and, in the case of this album, the Prostir imprint.
Fedorenko works with Ukrainian artist Zavoloka in the duo Cluster Lizard, whose releases Side-Line reviewed as Cluster Lizard – Prophecy in March 2019 and Cluster Lizard – Star Corsair in November 2021. The pair also released the single reviewed as Kotra & Zavoloka – Silence in December 2020. Zavoloka set out their shared working approach in the ‘Click Interview’ with Zavoloka in February 2019.
“Radness Methods” takes ritual drum music and rhythmic meditation as its starting point, described by the label as a series of abstract sonic actions rather than musical events.
Support Side-Line
More people read Side-Line than ever, and there is still no paywall and no advertising. Readers pay for it instead - from $5 a month.
Why we ask
Advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations we have not put up a paywall, and we refuse to add annoying advertising, so we need to ask for your help. Side-Line’s independent journalism takes time, money and hard work to produce, and we do it to push the artists we like, who are equally fighting to survive.
Handled by PayPal.
I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
