Mercury

Description

The Range continues its momentum with Mercury. Hinton relies on the techniques he established on his previous album Potential (2016), seeking to create a human connection in the age of the Internet by sampling anonymous voices found in the corners of YouTube, Instagram, and Periscope. Mercury is moody, exhilarating, and undeniably influenced by rave, and although it is heir to the pillars of IDM like Aphex Twin and grime like Skepta, the album proves that James Hinton positions himself outside the constraints of a specific genre. The result is both majestic and understated, blending huge synths against steady rhythms to offset the compressed voices of carefully chosen vocal excerpts. “Mercury is my most varied album to date,” says Hinton. “My memories of rave music, grime, and MPC music have a strong impact on almost every song.” Mercury was produced by James Hinton with additional production by Damian Taylor (Bicameral, Ricercar, Relegate), mixed by Lexxx (Alex Dromgoole) except for “Relegate” which was mixed by Damian Taylor, and mastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters in Los Angeles.