Some people complain that electronic music is too prone to introspection, too isolationist in approach, too much an excercise in technophilia. And a release like Face Takes Shape certainly adds to their stockpile of ammunition. The work of Berlin based Swede Andreas Bertilsson, it takes the concept of home recording to another level. Every scrap of sound contained on the 11 tracks of his debut release was sourced from within the confines of his own apartment. But the results are far from solipsistic. By sampling, deconstructing and manipulating his fridge and his heating system, as well as eavesdropping on the noises in the stairwell or drifting up to the balcony, Bertilsson has produced a surprisingly open and evocative collection of music. As floorboards creek and saucepans chime through the elongated drift of \"Two Polar Sleds\", the effect is benignly hypnotic, a domestic gamelan of considerable charm.
