From the outset, Clock Serum’s Contrast EP is tough. It’s four-on-the-floor body music with muscle and incessant energy—a collection of four tracks that embrace dramatic, driving percussion and volatile vocals by producer Andrew Wang. Side A begins with “Ghost”’s tenacious EBM bassline that creates a forceful headiness in contrast to elegant synth pads that lift the track from its filthiness. “Contrast,” the lead single, takes its vivacity from the likes of analog heroes Crash Course in Science with bouncy percussive elements. Wang’s punk-influenced vocals are the focus: “Put myself through hell, does it help?” he asks. “Who do I tell when you fall?” Side B introduces “Fall Away,” a track that reveals melancholy emotion. Here, intertwining synths crash over a bassline barely tamed by the softness of its stirring melodies. Contrast ends with “Trench,” armored with industrial drums that are ideal for grimy, poorly lit clubs. It’s grungy and bleak—just the way EBM should be. Clock Serum redefines the genre for himself, in the depths of the Contrast EP. It’s tough as nails dance music but the kind that’s unafraid to show glimpses of sensitivity, a passion that can’t be harbored for too long.
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