Jonas Kopp – Omega Man
Written on 14 March 2022 by Andrijan Kalashnikov
Jonas Kopp is Argentinian born and Spanish based producer and DJ of techno, first debuting on Tresor and further finding his work on other acclaimed labels such as Semantica and Axis. His appearance on Falling Apart surprised me positively – as the Frankfurt based vinyl label has some of the best hard techno artists from the new wave of producers. And Jonas’s work has been hypnotic and dubby from the start, mashed with strong accented drum lines which separated him from the hypnotic herd, but Falling Apart?
It’s during collaborations such as this one that great results are born. His 4-track EP entitled “Omega Man” which was released February 5th starts with the bombs right away, a poly-rhythmic kick dominating the soundstage and ambiences of synths following it in a circle. You know those tracks that make your hands do wild things at raves? This is what I’m talking about. Hard, hypnotic and definitely groovy from the start – and when the hi-hats are introduced the whole spectrum feels refined with an exact amount of dirt and insanity, but never goes beyond and lose its momentum or substance.
Lots of people argue that techno is about bringing chaos into a somewhat controlled environment – and it’s true, even in hard-techno when one with no experience might think it’s only kicks that are bashing – even there the chaos is often mastered by the producer which lures in the ravers slowly into his realm.
“They Live” for me is one of those instances where a slightly chaotic world appears through the melodic pads and journey this track takes us. I’m not sure of the movie with the same name, where people are hypnotized by aliens and live amongst the civilization disguised as humans, but it sounds like it to me. Dystopian sludge techno. “The Last Man Alive” continues with a techno modular chaos controlled by Jonas’s rhythm and composition. Gives me that intense vibe one might have on a pill, which is only a good thing when it comes to this kind of music. “U.C.C.” starts right away with aggressive arp-controlled modulators and that hard kick we’ve now got ourselves familiar with. It’s like a signature sound of his, but for this EP he goes a notch harder – and I’m glad that’s the case. Very dramatic pads appear out of nowhere and burden the track with more seriousness throughout the whole sonic atmosphere he has crafted.
The EP is available digitally on Bandcamp and as a 12” vinyl from Falling Apart.