Album Review: Fractal Fantasy's Visceral Minds 2

Author: Gavin McCauley
Since their inception in 2015, Fractal Fantasy (co-founded by Zora Jones and Sinjin Hawke) has gathered an impressive roster of producers and collaborators including the likes of L-Vis 1990, DJ Spinn, and DJ Rashad (RIP). Their latest compilation, Visceral Minds 2, released on August 15^th. Featuring 20 club-ready tracks, the compilation is more than twice as long as its 2015 predecessor.

The compilation opens up with JLin and Zora Jones collaborating on “Dark Matter,” a bass heavy footwork track representative of the experimental sound found throughout the entire compilation. DJ Sliink and Sinjin Hawke's “Raw” is a pure Jersey club banger (and my favorite track on the compilation), featuring sharp staccato synths and intense vocal chopping. However, the track still manages to experiment with the established genre and stand out among the relatively high volume of recent Jersey club releases. L-Vis 1990 of Night Slugs collaborates with Sinjin Hawke on “Vision.” The track includes an atmospheric intro and bridge sharply contrasted with the verses, as expected from L-Vis 1990. However, the track is hardly minimal like other L-Vis 1990 releases. The distorted verses and drum samples fit perfectly into the rest of the compilation. Famous Eno, Trigganom, Serocee, Sinjin Hawke, and Zora Jones collaborate on “Gunshotta.” An ethereal synth throughout the intro and chorus is the centerpiece of this track, separating itself from the generic Jersey club sound. DJ Spinn, DJ Rashad, and Sinjin Hawke's “Monterrey” is a perfect end to the compilation.

Visceral Minds 2 boasts a stacked roster of producers and establishes Fractal Fantasy as an important label within the club music scene. I think it's fair to say that the compilation is the most innovative recent release in club music.