Oval's 2016 full-length
Popp was a startling, exciting reinvention for the long-running electronic project. While best known for helping to pioneer the glitch aesthetic during the 1990s by creating oddly soothing pieces that incorporated the sounds of skipping compact discs,
Oval has continually evolved and explored different approaches over the years, from the electro-acoustic miniatures of 2010's
O to the vocal collaborations of 2013's Calidostópia! (recorded during a ten-day studio session in Brazil).
Popp was a whole new ball game, with a much heavier focus on songwriting, and a newfound embrace of sonic maximalism. Bright, colorful, and abundantly playful, the album featured diced vocals, heavy beat patterns, and an overall sense of constantly being overwhelmed and astonished. Appearing on Thrill Jockey once again,
Oval continued in this direction with the 2019 EP Eksploio and 2020 full-length
Scis. In some ways,
Scis feels slightly less busy than
Popp -- there's a little bit more breathing room in the arrangements, and more space for melodies to shine through. It's essentially a melodic whirlpool of acoustic tones, bombastic beats, and darting, buzzing bass lines. "Fluoresso" mixes gamelan-sounding percussion with the crunchy glitches and heavy drums, and "Pushhh" is a neatly organized cavalcade of scrambled pop vocals, clearing the way for a gentle bridge of pizzicato strings before piling on numerous layers of sounds for the track's finale. "Cozzmo" would be an excellent soundtrack for a complex, futuristic pinball game, heavy on rapidly flashing lights and bonus levels. "Oxagon" assembles clinking and splashing sounds into a chiming melody enhanced by strings and pianos, sort of resembling an
Oval version of the post-Brainfeeder school of production. Just as vibrant and full of wonder as
Popp,
Scis is another imaginative, unpredictable world of sound.