Artist Spotlight | Ninth Parallel

Background

Ninth Parallel may only have 6 songs completed (of which only four are available for download and only three on his SoundCloud), but his limited repertoire doesn't keep him from having 7,000 loyal followers and an official release for none other than Porter Robinson himself.  He put out his first track a little over 2 years ago and, while spread out, has been releasing tracks consistently.  With some fantastic tracks in the works (shown off in a couple of incredible previews no longer up on his SoundCloud), Ninth Parallel is definitely a name to look out for.

Spotlight

Ninth Parallel's SoundCloud

Ninth Parallel, while his mixing needs a little work, has no shortage of creative ideas and the resulting works that he's come up with in two short years are nothing short of pieces of art.  "Verloren" is the perfect example of this: it's definitely electronic, but there's no sign of the cookie cutter intro-build-drop-breakdown-drop-outro that plagues club scenes and personal playlists alike.  Each section flows to the next elegantly and without the ever-so-common kick and white noise buildup found in almost every EDM song.  The track itself sound like Madeon and Porter Robinson had a musical child (and Ninth Parallel is quick to mention them as musical influences), and the result is a beautiful, synth-heavy epic.  Speaking of Porter Robinson, Ninth Parallel was asked to and did an official remix for "Sea of Voices" on Worlds, and I actually covered it in the afore linked review.  "Sea of Voices (Ninth Parallel Remix)."  Ninth Parallel sites the remix more as a tribute to Porter Robinson and his music than an actual remix.  The remix sounds fundamentally similar to the original, just without the three minute intro and focuses more on making the climax of the original into the main focus of the song, with extra little sound and melodies here and there.  As a remix, it's very similar to the original, but as a tribute, it's a beautiful work that embodies the work that Porter Robinson does, and at the same time also showcases Ninth Parallel's style and the future he strives for.  And that future is bright: in a series of teasers now removed from SoundCloud and only available on Ninth Parallel's YouTube channel is a teaser for his upcoming song "Infinitum."  While it's only a two minute teaser, it holds nothing back and yet leaves everything to the imagination, or at least to the full release, whenever that is.  The bitcrushed chord stabs in the beginning never fail to evoke chills.  The kicks come in, and that and the fluttering windchime-esque sound in the background create a uniquely spacey feel.  The teaser leaves us hanging with a huge bass hit thats foreboding and yet awe-inspiring.  It's like a giant planet looming on the horizon, balancing between the vast expanse of space and the wonder of the starry night sky.

Ninth Parallel has come a long way in his two short years on the scene, and can only head upward from here.  With three self-released singles and an official remix, it's hard to tell what else Ninth Parallel has in store for us, but the answer can be nothing bad.