WORKOUTS by David August

Following on quickly from last year's prismatic 'VĪS', 'WORKOUTS' supplements David August's growing narrative, contemplating the rhythmic elements that lay fossilized in its predecessor's bedrock. August worked on the material in parallel, but realized the kinetic, drum-focused exercises didn't quite share the same musical language. While 'VĪS' examined movement from a metaphysical angle, tracking the evolution of life and sound, 'WORKOUTS' makes this abstract idea more physical with a series of studies that search for rhymes between timeless drum patterns and contemporary club forms. Meticulously edited and densely layered, these stirring rhythms uncover instinctive bonds between humanity and technology, ancient history and the Anthropocene.

'Workouts' is the first time August has approached self-consciously dancefloor driven material since 2020's 'Reminiscence of a Jewel', and he sees the project as a way to reconcile with this facet of his former self. Considering the philosophical implications of 'VĪS' and the album's wide-reaching sphere of influences and inspirations, August has been able investigate rhythm with a deeper field of vision. And like its predecessor, 'WORKOUTS' excavates ancient knowledge to make contemporary observations; prompting him to look further from his own background and search for higher meaning.

Presented without hierarchy or predetermined meaning, the tracks are labeled sequentially in an attempt to let the movement itself handle the heavy lifting. And although the evocative environmental recordings that encircled 'VĪS' are more subtle on 'WORKOUTS', August boosts the human element to the surface with energetic ad-libs and cries that add additional cadences to the thrusting drums and rousing bass tones. He paints these organic sounds with the vivid colors of club music: gut-churning bass punctuates spiraling hand drums and whistling flutes on 'WORKOUT I', while 'WORKOUT II' nestles cosmic, trance-inducing melodic cycles and euphoric pads into a rhythmic bed of woody cracks, jazzy fills and echoing, disembodied cries.

The abundant melodic landscape of 'VĪS' is more palpable on the metallophone-laced 'WORKOUT III', as August surrounds his expressive tuned percussion with vaporous pads and rich, blossoming natural soundscapes. Listen carefully, and the the skeletal structure of day-zero dubstep emerges from the slender drums and urgent calls, underpinning billowing, emotional waves of harmony. And on the final workout, August unleashes his most energetic pulse, criss-crossing perennial breaks and elaborate fills with oscillating environmental chirps and quivering, hypnotic synths. Bringing warmth back to club music, August asserts a human presence in all too often cold, technological terrain.

The Italian-German composer, DJ, label-owner and multi-instrumentalist has been releasing music since 2010, but it took self-evaluation and a re-examination of his priorities for August to lean towards the future and follow his most experimental inclinations.
In 2023, his output is harder than ever to define, stretching across genres and disciplines to chafe the heart of the human experience.