Electronic musician Brandon Ruffin has been crafting delicately layered, experimental tracks under the alias Ruff Draft for about a decade. In just the last year has managed to establish an emerging clique of forward thinking producers known as the Rootnote Collective, who were all brought together by wide reaching internet communities and a deep affinity for anything music. In between running a flourishing record imprint, Ruffin has been preparing for the release of his newest LP Illusion Fracture through LA electronic stalwart Alpha Pup Records. The project has officially arrived today, and in order to celebrate we allowing fans the opportunity to listen to the album in it's entirety here on EARMILK.
A majority of this 14-track project remains within the realm of synth-based electronic compositions reminiscent of the work of some SoCal-based of his contemporaries such as Free The Robots & Mono/Poly. But Ruffin's singular vision also incorporates bits of jazz, soul, & funk music, which may in part be due to the fact that Brandon is related to the great David Ruffin of The Temptations. This influence is most evident in the collaborative track with Mr. Carmack entitled "Curry and Cookies", which starts off as a down-tempo bass piece but then later evolves into a smooth piano led jazz arrangement.
Although Ruff manages to hold his own for most of this project, the most memorable parts of the journey occur when he pairs up with his fellow creatives. Such as in the intro track "Overt Miracles/Beliefs", where he and GoYama create an all encompassing collage of melody and chime instruments, or on "Foes and Folly" where vocal samples of Oakland-based songstress Swoonz are interwoven with the fluttering piano arrangements for a drastic & ghostly effect. But this is all succeeded by the album's hauntingly beautiful closing track "Messages" which serves as the perfect send-off for listeners, as it will leave them musing and yearning for more .Check out the full stream of the project below, and make sure to purchase the full project here!
Ruff Draft
"ILLUSION FRACTURE" LP [Full Album Stream]
- Alpha Pup
- 2/10/2015
