While You Were Sleeping by Opiate | Album Review
Opiate’s 2003 album While You Were Sleeping tickles your ear using intricate beats to make a big impression.
One of the great things about researching music is finding the samples artists incorporate into their projects. While doing a deep dive into Bjork ‘s 2001 album Vespertine, I would be introduced to Opiate’s work. Prior to my research, I was a little familar with Opiate’s work from his remix of “Pagan Poetry” on released on the song’s single. Thomas Knak, who goes under the moniker Opiate, has been creating electronic music since 1999. Many of the beats he uses have a delicate, fizzy quality to them. Instead of larger crunchier textures, Knak opts for much more understated taps, hums, buzzes, and pops that teleport you into a much smaller realm of sound.
The most recognizable track on the album is the opening piece “1% in 2/3 Speed”. Bjork would sample the song for “Undo” giving it its underlying shimmering glow. She sped the sample up a bit on album compared to what Knak officially released here. The track is a mix of ducks quacking, typing sounds, and a scanner. All these very mundane sounds mixed with the gentle hum of a soft synth pad gives a sense of calm to the day to day. I see why Bjork choose to use this on Vespertine. It’s domesticated samples provide a welcomed warmth.
“Strain” continues with the textural landscape of micro beats. Each sound, frantic in stuttering motion, sounds like the tapping of pencils, flicking of plastic rulers, and vibration of plastic cards. All this is juxtaposed against a marimba style synth sample that reverberates through the song. As the title states, this all builds tension. The samples become more and more layered adding a nervous energy to the song.
“Late” buzzes through the use of jittery fuzzy beats that tickle the ear. The plucky synth pad gives this very angular melody to the song. Knak creates a sound that effervesces like a soda fresh from the fountain. This one a great track to put on and just lose yourself in the sound.
“Drømte mig en drøm i nat,” which translates roughly to “Had a Dream Last Night,” brings in cool indigo kind of sound. The beats are very aqueous in nature conjuring up imagery of drops of water falling in the cool blue of early morning. Everything rides this gentle hum of a marimba-like melody and hushed whisper of a synth bass. Occasionally you get the arpeggiated melody that flutters in like a dragonfly. This nocturnal psuedo-jungle landscape that is painted by the track is beautiful to hear.
Thomas continues with his quiet experimentation on “Last Dr. Pepper”. The beats buzz like flustered hardshell bugs. Things rattle and vibrate with gentle sense of tension that is amplified by the rise and fall of the synth melody behind the sounds. It’s dark, but not threatening. I quite like this troubled gray world these beats and tones have generated into view.
“Gm Memory” has the most recognizable dance beat compared to the other tracks. Although subdued in nature, I admire the sort of industrial beat that feels like it would be at home in a Tricky song. This plays wonderfully against the sort of 16 bit video game sound that the synths bring into the song. Hearing it reminds me of reinvented Metroid soundtrack.
We are brought back into the micro focused realm of beats on “Opto File 1”. They bring to mind the rubbing of fabric against a microphone or the far off sounds of typing. This staticky beat is underlaid by the soft breathing of a sort of glass harmonica-like synth tone that brings like into this cider block toned realm. I absolutely love the beats. They sizzle in such a way that feels like tangible.
Knak ends out the project with the understated “Insert”. We continue with the now trademark tiny pops and static filled sparks that punctuate the beats of many of the songs. The shuffle of rippling synths and bell samples bring a blue/gray hue to everything in the song. Although not my favorite, I like how everything melts together.
It is no wonder why Bjork choose to work with Opiate on Vespertine. His prowess for working with much more intricate beats makes for a much more intimate and ambient sound. Some of the samples used on While You Were Sleeping brought to mind the gentle buzzes and hums on tracks like “It’s Not Up to You” and “Cocoon” on Vespertine. I have to say that my listen to the this project was as addictive has his moniker suggests. It has made me quite interested in the works he has created prior and since this project. My overall thoughts on While You Were Sleeping:
Loved it: “1% in 2/3 Speed”, “Drømte mig en drøm i nat”, “Gm Memory” & “Opto File 1”
Liked it: “Strain”, “Late” & “Last Dr. Pepper”
Disliked it: None
My overall rating: 6.5 out of 10.
