Launching the new R4808n label, Eddie Merced returns to apply his signature strain of expansive, immersive techno to a rich seam of inspiration. R4808n is actually the code for the restricted airspace over Area 51, nodding to an over-arching inspiration from covert military operations, espionage, and classified projects embedded in US military history. This first release, ‘Plant 42′, is named after a classified aircraft manufacturing plant in California.
The three pieces on ‘Plant 42’ EP are certainly powered by the machine thrum of techno, but the vast, sweeping melodics speak to mystery and wide-open spaces – the desert landscapes so synonymous with storied legends of the US Air Force, and the infinite skies and cosmos above them. Merced balances the propulsive, physical qualities of techno with these more expressive, evocative sounds, but, crucially, this is music with emotion and power. Much more than just a rumination on unanswered questions about military exploits, it’s a harmonically-charged excursion for internal reflection and Merced’s own expression. The human heart and soul experience life in the shadow of these great unfathomable machinations.
Release date: August 26th, 2022.