Passive Status – Papier
3.6.18 by Ryan Masteller

This is what I get: halfway into Passive Status’s “Papier” I’m hallucinating the alien vessel from “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,” the one trying to communicate with humpback whales. The Polish dark ambient artist has strung me along to this point, dragging me through various tactile environments by my ears until I’m suggestible enough for him to implant visions in my listening experience. Seeing weird crap through sound. Violent bouts of synesthesia.

So it’s an adventure, then. I can handle adventure. Even if it’s not going to lead me to faraway space stations or back in time to save the human race. Hey, I’m still along for Passive Status’s wild ride. That’s just how I like it these days. …And previous days, too, actually. I admit, I was always a thrill seeker.

The nine tracks on “Papier” establish miniature worlds within themselves, each one a specific oddity to which you must reorient before immersion. They don’t last too long, none much over five minutes, so you’re constantly shifting your balance, needing to ground yourself before you get too lost in the mix. But that’s the fun part isn’t it? Go on, then – get yourself lost! Don’t worry about preparing for what’s around the next dark corner, what’s hiding in the next dark shadow. Be surprised, and, sure, a little freaked out maybe. Weird stuff’s happening – OK – but it’s the ride that’s important! Don’t waste time worrying about things you have no control over, like Klingons or Ferengi.

I’m still hallucinating, aren’t I…

Edition of 50 on the Plaża Zachodnia label, ships straight outta Kolobrzeg.