Vesna, which means spring in their native tongue, is an apt name for this Russian duo. "Snow Sences" their US full-length debut CD has the feeling that Spring is just around the corner. It is not as much a concept album but rather a stylistic approach to their song writing that Vesna utilizes on Snow Sences. Warm rolling beats that would not be out of place in the K7 stable are mixed with icy glitch-ridden textures that still remind you that Spring has not yet arrived. If the chill-out room at your next warehouse party is in a freezer... Ask for Snow Sences by name... And feel the warmth of Spring.

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Three years have passed since their self-titled release on Cheburec (RU), and now Vesna (Dmitry Tchemiak and Alexey Gaponenko) are back with a much more serious and thoughtful piece of work. Snow Sences is the debut full-length with n5MD (since their 7” release), and it’s easy to hear that they’ve solidified their sound with relaxed melodic spaces full of intricate details blended to downbeat, jazzy frequencies. The raw layers of electronica are totally stripped down, ready for audible consumption at the flip of a switch.

Much of Snow Sences contains sliced voices that congregate around thick basslines and digitally enhanced twitches – whether they are processed or direct, the intentions are precise and astounding. The title track delivers a fresh dose of downbeat percussion in parallel to expanded melodies that tweak, screech and reciprocate into a space of their own. “5 People” opens up with a tranquil melody, much in line with Warp’s early 90’s Artificial Intelligence sound, then mutates into beat infused layers of casual funk. “Mesmeric Diamantine” opens with an acidic analog melody that loops straight into a futuristic, emotional sphere of slippery ambience and rhythmical finesse.

It’d be challenging not to mention the sensitive hip-hop influences on Snow Sences; tracks like “Waxen Beats,” “Road,” “Desrt,” and “Dilemma” are perfect examples of Vesna’s architectural sound-escapes where emotions meet exploratory beats. “Deeply Under the Ice,” however, describes itself quite well; reminiscent of the delicately warped ambiences of Boards of Canada, this track flows peacefully as an ambiguous entity.

Expressing their sound with soothing structures, Vesna implement an authentic experimental pulse that doesn't’t veer too far into the distance. Instead you’re invited to join in on what they feel is a more improved ideology of electronic music. Simplicity drenched in a layer of downbeat percussion, Snow Sences is a blueprint of ideas and emotions spread over 60+ minutes with minimum deviation.

Prepare to launch yourself into a digital forest of cold beats melting over a thin layer of ice. grooves

Don't let the title fool you: Vesna's Debut for n5MD is chilled but nowhere near ice cold. Russians Dimitry Tchernjak and Alexey Gaponenko drop a mix of stuttering, downtempo IDM, blankets of tender bass and rhodes, and dry, tight hints of jazzy rhythmics into a solid hour long release that rarely fails.

The sober "Dilemma" nails a sparse, funky cadence to its smooth, saddened robot room, while a jungle flavored drum loop leans forward just a shade in "Autumn Coma," a clockwork backdrop for a falling melodic phrase and hints of nord. "Road" is a slower, more sensuous affair, with delicate pops of kettle drum and bongo that seem to hint more at a day spent roasting in the tropics than a soundtrack for the tundra.

The subliminal "Lotus" features a slippery, naughty beat made out of sweepy squeaks and squaks, all running in and out of a pair of cutie-pie melodies. "Deeply Under The Ice" takes crunchy, upwardly decaying rhodes piano and peels away its echos like wilted flower petals, exposing the track's scarred undercarriage. Closing the disc with its strongest work, and one featured on n5MD's MD8 compilation, "Rack Mode" explodes with an awesome nod to Plaid's weird amalgam of sci-fi and hip-hop: a moody, rubbery, bass-heavy beat grounding its expansive, ethereal passage, shards of icy light spilling out at add angles.

With the excellent Snow Sences, think of jagged Kruder & Dorfmeister without the silly hedonism, and you're getting much , much warmer. fakezine

vesna means spring in russian. and vesna is a duo consisting of dmitry tchemiak and alexey gaponeko from russia. if their name is vesna, which means spring, you can immediately imagine how their music sounds. it reminds of post idm sound that was in serious expansion at the beginning of this millennium and became really strong especially with the russian scene. but anyway it’s a bit different and with contemporary production. it is calm and warm electronica that reminds of spring of course and that brings mellow spring atmosphere from around end of march in the crossover with winter. they are dealing with calm moody jazzy melodies connected with thick, smooth bass and slow break, down tempo rhythm. various instruments are layered in relaxed emotional melodic haystacks. warp influences are also visible with subtle instrumental hip hop moments arranged in smooth sound structures. on moments melancholic and even dark a bit, just to show that winter still hasn’t left. icy glitchy textures that sometimes cover layers of ambiental soundscapes are also there to prove that spring hasn’t arrived fully. but it is getting warmer and everything is becoming green. sky is becoming clear, opened and high. everybody is getting out of himself. spring is definitely best season.