rvatski, the experimental jungle aspect of former Berklee College of Music student Keith Fullerton Whitman, adds many things to the traditional "glitch/IDM" sound. First and foremost, Whitman imbues his work with a gleefully experimental approach to what is often a clinical genre. This exuberance aligns Hrvatski with Kid 606 and the Tigerbeat 6 label; indeed, Hrvatski's Simpletext-ragga remix of Kid's "My Kitten" (the closing track of Down With the Scene) raised his profile in the IDM community by leaps and bounds.

However, the other essential aspect of Hrvatski's sound draws more from avant-garde composers (his more ambient work under his own name leads to many a comparison to Terry Riley). This intellectual approach to strange harmonies and drones creates an enthralling counterpoint to his more playful sense of beat programming.

Hrvatski's refreshing approach is adequately displayed on Attention:Cats LP (ostensibly a compilation album, but later to revealed to be mostly the work of Whitman) and Okapi Tracks, both released on his own Reckankreuzungsklankewerkzeuge label. But his watershed work was 1999's Oiseaux 96-98. Using the time-honored "Amen" breakbeat sample, Hrvatski twisted, flipped, stretched, and pureed the break throughout each of the album's 11 tracks. The result showed the versatility of a jungle cliche, as well as the offbeat style of its orchestrator.

The next year had Hrvatski making waves remixing (in most cases, totally reworking) other's works. In 2001, the tables were turned as almost three dozen laptop artists remixed work from Attenton:Cats for the RKK13 compilation in a variety of styles. Currently, Hrvatski has just finished an extensive tour with Reckankreuzungsklankewerkzeuge labelmate Greg Davis, and released Swarm and Dither on the Planet Mu label as well as several other releases as Keith Fullerton Whitman. Swarm and Dither expands Oiseaux's palette of sounds for an equally mindbending avant-jungle trip. Headphones highly recommended.

Quick Facts:

Location: Boston, Massachusetts

Style: Jungle, Glitch, IDM

Labels Appeared On: Reckankreuzungsklankewerkzeuge, Planet Mu, Kranky

Major Releases:
Attention:Cats
Oiseaux 96-98
Swarm & Dither
Playthroughs (as Keith Fullerton Whitman)

Starting Point: Oiseaux 96-98

Essential: Oiseaux 96-98