SBTRKT Gets Creative on 'Wonder'

In many ways, SBTRKT’s second studio album holds true to the mission he undertook with his first. A pioneer of the post-dubstep genre, the solo musician Aaron Jerome boldly experiments with unexpected yet restrained beats, sounds, and harmonies as a centerpiece for the album. Unlike most modern artists today, SBTRKT even pushes away the necessity for a verse-chorus-bridge organization; instead, he relies on the layering of new harmonies and rhythms to propel the songs forward. But what really seems to drive his artistic calling is not fame or distinction within a particular style of music, but rather a pure, unassuming love for exploration. Ever since his debut album in 2011, SBTRKT has made a point of preserving his anonymity, performing live shrouded in tribal masks, releasing his music to radio stations namelessly—even the very name SBTRKT shows that Jerome truly takes himself out of the equation. What’s left behind is a naked curiosity with nothing to hide and no reputation to tarnish.

SBTRKT uses this freedom to his advantage in this second installation. In each track, he blazes new trails, refusing to be pinned down by a single style or pattern. This makes for a more experimental than cohesive aura around the album, where each song comes with new ideas and questions. Just as he establishes an unpredictable craze in “Gon Stay” with bursts of harmonic percussion and a catchy bassline, Jerome takes a step back in the stripped-down pop ballad “If It Happens” by relying on only simplistic piano and vocals.

Despite this versatility, it must be said that patience is a reliable virtue for SBTRKT. In the first full track, “Wonder Where We Land,” he finds a similar style to that of his first album through a renewed partnership with the soloist Sampha. The hauntingly beautiful vocals balance with the restrained but often unexpected background bass and white noise to give the song a slow, laid-back development. As the track name suggests, this anticipatory listening experience leaves us wondering where the song itself will land—a refreshing sense of uncertainty within a musical age so drawn to easy, consistently attractive harmonies.

“Look Away” reinforces this strength, starting with minimal, suspenseful instrumentation with only high-pitch percussion and rolled chords, steadily evolving into a layered creation with more complex, engaging riffs and harmonies. As Jerome allows the song to take shape slowly and clunkily, listeners hear and anticipate the potential direction and possibility that the song presents. SBTRKT then manipulates our anticipation by sliding back into uncertainty at the end, and not arriving at the climax we were expecting.

However, once SBTRKT abandons that patience, the album gets a little less consistent. In “Lantern,” a single pattern of notes dominates the whole song, with the occasional interruption of a contrasting harp-like solo to put the listener out of place. While the intention to highlight the extremes is evident within the song, it lacks the direction and appeal of his more unpredictable yet attractive tracks. “Everybody Knows” is the other side of the coin. Although it sticks to the same riff for the entire song, it’s catchy and fun in a way that SBTRKT’s other songs aren’t. For the three minutes and 31 seconds of that repeated riff, we don’t need the suspenseful restraint; we’re not waiting for something to happen. We’re happy with just enjoying what’s being laid on the table. This is much more in the style of generic pop, but he does it cleanly and he does it well. The last track on the album, “Voices in My Head” features A$AP Ferg, blending two seemingly contradictory styles—but Jermone makes it work perfectly. SBTRKT stays true to his unpredictability with strategic surges and insertions of sounds while giving a dark and often restrained background to Ferg’s fast-paced but laid-back rap. What comes out is a grounded, strong track that shows promise through its direction, dark atmosphere, and occasional unpredictability.

SBTRKT’s album is far from perfect and has plenty of moments that just don’t work. But it also doesn’t seem like it was at all his intention to create anything that memorable or groundbreaking. As a guy who subtracts his identity in every way possible from his music, SBTRKT aims more to explore new fields and leave no stone unturned.