Picking & Choosing

It's getting to that time of the month where I have to start making some choices for Bandcamp Friday, with Feburary being shorter and all I run the risk of being a bit short. I have some stuff still to check out but I took a flick through my archives to see if there's anything that jumps out - which of course is always a good excuse to share them with you all as well.

George Luks - Hannaford's Cove (1922)

I've been going back to Susumu Yokota recently - Yokota's career was unfortunatley cut short, but you can't say he didn't make the most of the years he was active, Discogs lists 29 albums between 1999 and 2019, and that's not even counting the other releases under his many aliases. It can be a bit of a minefield with Yokota in the best way, over his career he's dabbled in Techno, Ambient, House, Breaks and more over his many releases. You'll find yourself surprised with some of them though - Love Or Die is listed on Discogs as 'Ambient', and while it does dip into that from time to time, there's so much beat action going on here I'd struggle to call it that. But that's getting away from the point - from my quick run through it's a great little slice of downtempo.

Two standouts for you: The Scream Of A Sage Who Lost Freedom And Love Taken For Granted Before is the most uptempo of the bunch, a frantic cut of Drum & Bass amidst the calm of the rest of the tracklist. But the moment I fell in love is track three - The Loneliness Of Anarchic Beauty Achieved By My Ego which for me is the perfect bridge between the more ambient parts of Sakura and his more beat oriented work. Give the whole album a listen if your taste aligns with mine, I'm really enjoying my time with it.



Keeping in similar theme, Rei Harakami, who has a similar tale to tell, albeit with less releases than Yokota. But even so, I'm a very well publicised fan of Harakami's work, I simply adore the delicate sound he nigh perfected by the time [Lust] released. Relatively simple all things considered, that trademark Harakami sound is a Roland SC-88 Pro using the basic Electric Piano sound with a touch of delay, but even so Harakami weaves wonders with it. I've deliberately left a couple of albums of his on the wishlist for a while as a result, it's the kind of music I treat myself to once in a while to both avoid overplaying it all but also to make it all the more sweeter. It doesn't take long for Wasuremono to follow suit, you could drop the needle pretty much anywhere on this record and be immediately immersed in it - Itoguchi showing it off in full force. I will also freely admit that a large reason this one is here is that I love me some pitch bends.



Following the Drum & Bass streak I've mentioned above, I've also been trying to broaden my horizons a bit. I noted down the 'Out Patents' series from Hospital Records well over a decade back at this point, back when I was really into the brand of Liquid Funk stuff they were putting out, but like so many of my noted down 'to check out' things it sort of fell by the wayside. Thanks to their Bandcamp having a fairly exhaustive backcatalogue it's back on the menu, we're taking a trip back 22 years ago to the very first Out Patients compilation - a far cry from the melodic Liquid Funk that you might know them for these days, this compilation is billed as having both 'Jazz Breaks, Future Soul' in addition to the expected Drum & Bass.

The one I"ve chosen from it certainly fits more into that Jazzy Breaks mold, more in line with something like the Moving Shadow Strom From The East compilations I've been revisiting recently. A little 'of the era' in its execution perhaps, but it's a style that I have a fondness for - the kind of tune that would fit right in on a playlist we refer to at work as Coffee Shop Electronic.



And that'll be all for now, I do have some others lined up, but as I've learned from previous months doing this kind of post - it pays to store some cards for later. That and I like how these play out back to back, feels fairly cohesive. Feels fairly long too, but my perception of that is kind of skewed these days now I've gotten into the habit of typing posts on multiple devices, so apologes in advance for any stange formatting choices! But I digress as usual. I'll be back with more of my Bandcamp scoops sometime next week but until then, as always - stay safe and enjoy the music.

-CVF

Hip Hoppin' Be Boppin'

Great news over the weekend for music accessibility. After what feels like forever (and some drip feeding at the start of quarantine), the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack has finally appeared on streaming platforms everywhere. I was hopeful after Yoko Kanno's Ghost In The Shell stuff appeared not too long ago considering she worked on both but I wasn't expecting it to be so soon.

While not wholly electronic it's a damn fine soundtrack to a damn fine series, it stands well enough on its own that you don't need to know anything about the series to dive right in, and while not all of it is available to stream there's still plenty to get your teeth stuck into. If you're looking for some Jazzy vibes for your Monday morning this is supremely what you're looking for. I'll be covering a couple pieces that I dig and also once again sharing some of the Remix album that has some very interesting artist choices on it. Really, I'm just super stoked that people can access the OSTs more easily, makes discovery (and you know, actually talking about them in post format) much easier indeed.

Starting with a bit from OST 2, playfully subtitled No Disc (though it was also on Vitaminless which has been on Spotify for longer!). If you're at all familiar with Drum & Bass (especially around the late 90's / early 00's when Bebop was around) you'll know that the combination of Jazz and Drum & Bass isn't an incredibly farfetched one; the E-Z Rollers and Flytronix were both doing similar around the same time. The Bebop OST flirts with this combination a bit here and there and even goes full Jungle for a minute on OST 3. Fantaisie Sign takes a more Lounge slash R&B style to the proceedings but the Jazz influence is still very much there, I've loved this track for a long time, but those background pads are really doing it for me today. Slightly unrelated, the combination of driving brass and sultry French vocals reminds me in a roundabout way of Thievery Corporation's Saudade, though that LP took a lot more inspiration from Bossa Nova.



Moving swiftly away to something more fitting for the electronic side of things. There's also an entire remix album called Music For Freelance that I've written about extensively before but I will take any excuse to bring it up again. It's a veritable who's who of the electronic music world of the late 90's, starting with a mix of the opening theme Tank! by none other than Luke Vibert. Vibert's mix doesn't actually do much to the main body of the song (which is more of a testament to the strength of the original opening tune itself rather than a critique of Vibert's mix). It's not the most altered version here, but Vibert's additions are still pretty evident, I love the little breakdown he added around the midpoint too.



I was originally planning to cover every remix on here but in hindsight I think that'll be a little too long. Skipping over Fila Brazillia's remix this time and diving into DMX Krew's mix of Cats On Mars. I wonder if the artists got to choose which track they remixed, because the slightly goofy sounding original Cats On Mars seems like it would be right up Ed from DMX's alley, given his penchant for cheesy electro and all. The end result is stripped of pretty much every element of the original save for Yoko Kanno's nonsense vocal, the rest replaced with cool twinkling synths and an expectedly DMX fat electro bassline. An odd choice but a very fine remix, Ed's personality shines through and it brings some nice variety to the roster of remixers.



Taking things downtempo with Mr. Scruff for the next mix. Once again another choice that would make sense if the artists got to pick which track they wanted to mix, the original Cat Blues sounds like it would be an absolute goldmine for Scruff's style of sampling. And that is definitely true for the mix itself, Scruff takes all the bits and pieces and makes a lovely hip hop style tune out of it. Totally transformed from the original, it doesn't even re-use the melody, a remix in the truest sense of the word. I do think it suffers a little bit from long plateaus of sound like there should be a vocal or something but that's the extent of my complaints (Well, that and the fadeout at the end seems a little sudden). By the time it starts to grate those bombastic opening samples slide back into the mix once again and I can't stay still.



Next is an interesting one from DJ Vadim. Firstly because the track being remixed, Fe, wasn't actually available on any of the OST releases around the time of this remix album, only appearing on the Cowboy Bebop CD Box in 2002. And compared to the original, Vadim's mix is quite different indeed. We're no stranger to the mixes not resembling the originals by this point but Fe is on another level; going from a Spy-suite style piece to a full on lumbering trip-hop number that has more than a smidge of Portishead influence. I love the slightly spooky turntablist style it brings, it again feels like it should have a vocal or something, but that could just be a casualty of me looping it 3-4 times before writing.



Finally, playing us out is a Remix of Fantaisie Sign by none other than Ian Pooley. It's at this point I realised there's a conspicuous lack of full on house on this remix LP, I could very well see the original getting a Stardust or Modjo style makeover given the style of the time. What we get instead is ironically more in line with the Thievery Corporation Bossa Nova I mentioned in the initial paragraph, not like that's a bad thing but as I mentioned above, the whole album seems to have this downtempo streak and it would have been nice to have one or two dancefloor friendly pieces here. Still, not complaining. Get a load of the bassline on this one.



And that wraps us up for today, again while not strictly electronic definitely check out some The Seatbelts' stuff because it's a great listen and fantastically produced throughout, hopping through multiple genres across the 4 or so OST album for the series. Speaking of, I highly recommend Cowboy Bebop as a series as well, it's a fantastic production and very, very accessible if you've never seen or are generally not a fan of anime; there's no lore or anything you need to know before going in either. I'll stop myself there because that could be a whole other article in and of itself. As always, stay safe and enjoy the music!

-CVF

Diggin' Results [2020 Repost]

NOTE: Hi there! I'm going through the backcatalogue and re-publishing all the posts I can find. I'm re-posting them as new articles too just so there is visible content going up. This post is originally from April 2015.

Enjoy,
-CVF

Got an interview with University on Tuesday, feeling good about it but of course that's always the case with me until I have to actually go in there. Anyway here's the results of my weekend's listenings.


Found the above on Reddit of all places, my music discovery there has been pretty limited until now, turns out there's some good stuff in them threads. Intro on this one's very lush indeed. Check this guy out, he more than deserves yer support!

I've been on the hunt for more classical meets experimental electronic since I got my mitts on Rossz Csillag Alatt Született, and where should I find my fix but from the most credited composer in my library Yoko Kanno. That breakdown in the middle is straight up amazing to boot.



And as always my most recent favourite jam from Squarepusher. It's got to have been well over a year since I first heard this one on that promo video and it's still just as sweet. The fact it's played by actual, literal robots only makes it even better. Welcome to the future, where robot bands play jazz.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Double Click Blues

Gerard Sekoto - The Jazz Band (1961)

Oh boy guess whose mouse is actin' up again? It's a lil annoying from time to time so I'm going to try and knock a few posts out while the gettin's good. With the title in mind thought I'd pay a visit to some of the jazzier parts of my collection. Starting with something from FlyLo, it ain't hard to see why he was on Adult Swim's radar with tunes like this.



Revisiting the Cowboy Bebop remixes again. In what will probably be blasphemy to other fans of the soundtrack, the original Piano Black is not one of my all time favourites from it, luckily I have Ian O'Brien to remedy that. The downtempo take on the tune is a lovely addition to an already solid remix compilation.



Speaking of that album, I can't go having a jazzy themed post without giving a nod of the hat to Mr. Scruff now can I? Here's another bit from Keep It Unreal, specifically one of the bonus tunes on the 2nd disc 10 year anniversary edition. The intro alone is finger snappingly good, and like much of Keep It Unreal is a lovely listen.



-Claude Van Foxbat

The SubmitHub Roundup, Vol. 2

Wasting no time getting stuck into more things I'm picking up from Submithub. The first offering this time is on point, As I'm sure you've seen many a time I go seeking out more indie electronic stuff in the vein of Au Revoir Simone and Lykke Li. Well this not only scratches that itch, but also has just a sprinkling of funk and a smidgen of disco throughout, think a little like Breakbot or Chromeo. Another thing about my submithub experience so far is that I have yet to see bad artwork accompanying a submission too, which is a real change from the soundcloud trawls of old. It's just a shame I had to come by it on a rainy day.



The strings make a return again (although not for as long as last time), being replaced around 40 secs in by some almost Rusite-esque backing. It does kinda lose me with the dubstep style drop but I can chalk that mainly up to going to way too many student parties and being far too exposed by that sound. It does manage to bring it back around afterwards tho, the breakdowns between are solid, so props to the producer for not banking on the dubstep to carry the rest of the tune, and I'd definitely be interested in more of the more sedate sound from them.



Speaking of funky bits however, Bluberry Spy has everyone so far beat. It had me from the very start with that bassline, and those little splashes of organ throughout are giving me major Nightmares On Wax vibes in the best way. It's actually something that's been sorely missing from my daily audio diet, and only by hearing this did I realise that. Still, at least I have an outlet for that now, will definitely be keeping tabs for when I need to get my fix.

Revisiting

Marjorie Strider - Rosemarie's Bag (1973)

Keeping it on a tight sched here for now, here's a couple tunes to keep you goin. Revisiting my new favourite Swede since The Knife split, Simon Viklund. If you've kept up with his stuff I've posted you have an idea of the electro styled stuff he normally puts out. But way back I mentioned I'd love to see 'im tackle hip hop or trip hop again since he last did in like '09 or so, well my wish was granted a little while back and it's nothing short of fantastic, Make sure to stay tuned after the fake-out outro at about a minute in cos it gets even better from there.



Speaking of revisiting, I've been giving Squarepusher's jazz record Music Is Rotted One Note another go. It does have some real experimental stuff on there that isn't everyone's bag (mine included) but also these damn fine displays of his musical flexibility too. And My Sound is by farad away the best example on there.



And one final revisit to complete the trilogy. Massive Attack are incoming with a new LP it seems, there's a couple of tracks out from it right now but I haven't got around to listening to them yet. The original run was limited to apple things which is pretty silly if U2 has taught us anything. Regardless, Massive have been going since '88 and show no signs of stopping soon which is lovely news. Here's one of my all time faves from their sophomore LP Protection.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Animation Blues

About finished up my latest video project, and got time to get stuck into a project that stuck out in my inbox about a week ago. Now some introduction: the worlds of Jazz and electronic music may seem like odd bedfellows, but there's plenty of influence to be seen: from the Lounge meets Drum & Bass combo from the E-Z Rollers, combined with more of a trip hop feel from Red Snapper, the often frantic bass guitar work from Squarepusher to the more experimental parts of Flying Lotus' Cosmogramma, and again on the Ideas+Drafts+Loops tape.



Why do I bother setting that up you say? Well this is exactly more of that, albeit leaning more on the jazz side than the electronics. There's a lot of piano work on here too, but if it's good enough for Aphex Twin then it's good enough for Mr. James (And if I could play I'd make use of it too).

Maybe a little out of leftfield for our usual posting, but there's some highlights to be sure. Tracks 2 & 3 show off some lovely Downtmepo/Trip Hop and Indie-ish electronic respectively, and I'd recommend you start there for a perfect summary of the vibe here. (Also be aware the player starts on track 6 from some reason) I can definitely see some good stuff coming out of Mr. James' camp in future, particularly if he takes it in a more Hip Hop / Tip Hop direction but then again I am biased. Regardless, get stuck in, and I'll see you in a couple days!

-Claude Van Foxbat

Exhibition Beats

Pretty sure I'm at least 80% done with my final exhibition prep now, not that I had much to do compared to some people. The joys of doing video art include not having to put shelves up for your work among other things. But enough about that, let's talk music as usual.

Roy Lichtenstein - Oh, Jeff...I Love You, Too...But... (1964)

More Seatbelts this time, because I am addicted to future jazz (literally future jazz in this case). Taken from the limited edition box set verison of the Cowboy Bebop OST, this one takes a little whileto get goign but when it does I cannot stop grooving to it. Ridiculously smooth, just what you need on a Tuesday afternoon.



A recent return to my library, there's not a bad mix present on Everything But The Girl's Blame EP. Taken from their brief foray into drum & bass, but it's very well done indeed and that's not just my 1999 nostaliga talking. Since I've already given the rundown on my favourite mixes of the track I think it's high time I post the original.



More from Viklund again, this time its one of his more downbeat contributions to the soundtrack. Still a little dramatic with the strings in the background, but I love the tune and it's slow post-rock style build to the final section.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Diggin' Results

Got an interview with University on Tuesday, feeling good about it but of course that's always the case with me until I have to actually go in there. Anyway here's the results of my weekend's listenings.


Found the above on Reddit of all places, my music discovery there has been pretty limited until now, turns out there's some good stuff in them threads. Intro on this one's very lush indeed. Check this guy out, he more than deserves yer support!

I've been on the hunt for more classical meets experimental electronic since I got my mitts on Rossz Csillag Alatt Született, and where should I find my fix but from the most credited composer in my library Yoko Kanno. That breakdown in the middle is straight up amazing to boot.



And as always my most recent favourite jam from Squarepusher. It's got to have been well over a year since I first heard this one on that promo video and it's still just as sweet. The fact it's played by actual, literal robots only makes it even better. Welcome to the future, where robot bands play jazz.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Wednesday Workin'

Hello all, just got feedback on my final draft of my dissertation and by all accounts it's going alreet. So with that gap in my schedule I'm gonna lay down some audio music for you all to enjoy.

Dabs Myla - Sunshine Dreams And Super Constellations

First tune here is decidedly non-electronic but it's been repeating on me all week and we do like to break the electronic mold occasionally here on ilictronix. So have some laid back Japanese indie courtesy of The Pillows



Recent listening has also seen a return to the more jazzy side of things, and 'Pusher is a go-to guy for that. The opening couple of tracks on Hard Normal Daddy are still jut as sweet as the first listen, get a load of 'Pushers bass work on this one.



Can't mention Jazzy beats without giving a nod to Mr. Scruff. When I picked up the re-issue of his debut (the cleverly titled Mrs. Cruff) I almost blew my setup with this one, that bassline is deadly. Check him out if you're looking for more vibes like this one.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Workin' Workin'

Hello I have been working all day on videos and PDFs here is some music that has seen me through those tasks and also some art for your eyeballs.

Syd Mead - Costume Concept for Yori (Tron)

Roulé remains a top quality source of house for y'all to enjoy. Especially when it's got one half of Daft Punk behind it. Here's Together again, best put to use in the encore for Alive 2007. Still a solid track on it's own tho.



Jazz is always good. Who doesn't like smooth jazz? Here's some from Squarepusher. Not much like this on the album sadly, but what there is a joy to listen to. 'Pusher is very flexible when it comes to sound, and tracks like this only make that more apparent.



Along that same line, nobody can hate Ambivalence Avenue, the LP is just so well done that I still have it in regular rotation since I got in in '10. Here's a solid exhibit of a Bibio instrumental, if you did it go and listen to the full LP, you won't be disappointed.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Automated 5: Future Proof

Thought I might have some downtime after the last post only to be immediately slammed with more dissertation work. So with that in mind here's another quickie to tide you over until the next one.

Roy Lichtenstein - Reverie (1965)
Click here for huge (3318 x 3974 px)

Dug out Broadcast again, and again another example of how tunes grow on you over time. I skipped over this one plenty just because I'm not a huge fan of the intro, but keep on listening and it just gets better. Nailed it in completely Broadcast fashion, Trish Keenan was a talent gone far too soon.



More from FlyLo's Ideas .rar, This one got a lot of press just from the title alone (which is admittedly pretty great) but they kinda let it overshadow the tune itself. Think the other Jazzy cuts from Ideas like Oatmeal Face and Wake Me and you're pretty much good.



Daft Club gets an awful lot of bad press in the DP community. Yeah it's not the best jump coming straight after Discovery but it has it's moments, like that Slum Village mix of Aerodynamic which is quality. Also the intro is a tune I fall in love with every time, from the nostalgia pangs of the Dial-Up intro 'til the very end. Perhaps one of the most lush tracks the Punks have ever made.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Gloomy Sunday Vol. III

The sad train can't stop, won't stop. Almost forgot to put together a list this week but don't you worry I pulled it together last minute. Get ready for some sads. (You may notice a theme here, that may or may not be inspired by a certain movie I re-watched recently. I won't tell if you don't)

Edward Hopper - Sunday (1926)

Something I found recommended to me after I listened to a bunch of Squarepusher's jazzier stuff on Grooveshark, and I instantly fell in love like I did with HEALTH's Pills. The intro had me interested, but I thought it was just an ambient tune. When the guitar came in it quickly shot up my list of favourites. Such a gorgeous atmosphere painted here, I can't even pick a highlight it deserves a full listen every time.



I got turned onto Brook's work after looking over the long list of collaborations Brian Eno's done over the years, adn I was interested to see the ambient label thrown around, I've never heard of him outside of Eno so I decided to look into it. I was surprised to find a fair few soundtracks under his name, and from that I listened to his album Cobalt Blue which is actually really good. The main highlight is Ultramarine for sure, but the tracks around it are just as good. track it down if you dig.



Finally stepping into HEALTH-like territory again, here we get some noisy guitar happenings. When running my selections past a friend this one got the suitable description of an 'Audio Hangover' and I couldn't agree more. Not as pretty as the other two granted, but a nice addition of grit for a gloomy sunday.



-Claude Van Foxbat

New FlyLo Incoming

After a few days of dropping some suitably trippy accompanying art on us though his Facebook, and revealing the impresive list of collaborators, FlyLo dropped the new teaser for his upcoming LP coming this October, charmingly titled You're Dead!.



I'm feeling this one a lot, a nice change of pace after taking a while to get into Cosmogramma and Until The Quiet Comes, it's got a real jazzy vibe running throughout that is giving me early Squarepusher vibes. A bit early to call it just from the preview, but the new direction and art collaboration look to be on the right track. we'll let you know more as it happens!

-Claude Van Foxbat

Sum Of Parts

What d'ya make of multi-part tracks? I don't like the ones that lead directly into each other because I love shuffle too much, but they're not without merit. Here's a cross section of a few I have.

Atelier Olschinsky - Structures V (01)

For a long time I thought the title of this was a typical piss take you see from the likes of 'Pusher and crew. Lo and behold there are actually multiple Male Pill parts (they still aren't in any sort of order though). Another quite jazzy cut from his debut Warp LP Hard Normal Daddy though with much more prominent breaks. A tad long, but a good listen.



Real love/hate relationship with this one, it takes a while to get going, and the quietness means I crank it up and always jump when those rough drums come in befitting the name. Still that sample is brilliant, and as a track its great, it brings the fire and really shows off DJ Shadow's production chops. Not what I'd associate with the album (I much prefer the trip hop parts), but still a solid track.



And finally Apparat. This is one of those ones I mentioned that lead into each other, but this one gets a pass because the two tracks can stand alone with how its cut. The second part is more along the lines of Clark-style ambient noise, so I picked part one cos I think its a better example of Apparat's output: sprinkles of minimal and ambient above an IDM backdrop.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Smooth On Sunday

Alright, gonna list you some of my techy listenin's of today. Been more boring laying out work for a PDF so here's whats been keeping me sane, tracks after the suitably techy art!

Pascal Dombis - Post-Digital Blue (2013)

I really need to get more Plaid in my collection. Double Figure is a fine place to start, it's pretty consistent with their sound but it's also a bit long if you're looking to just dive in. This one's a good example, not quite the full on playful electronica of Plone but not the subtle menace of say Aphex Twin despite the name.



This album has been at the top of all my media players for about 2 years now, and I can still never tire of it. This one perhaps isn't the best example of the smooth sounds Mike weaves into his tracks, but I've posted some of those before. Still, even saying that the beat salad works really well with those lush synths after the mid-point.



And finally, the square man himself. Not talked too much about the album this is from (his debut on Warp!) but it stands on its own in terms of quality. Here 'Pusher mixes his then current 'Drill 'n Bass' style with just a hint of Jazz influence. The opening couple of tracks on this LP are nigh perfect, but in true Jazz fashion, here's something a little longer for you. Stay tuned 'cos things get beautiful around 3:40.



-Claude Van Foxbat

Music For Robots (EP Review)

I've been waiting to put this one out for a long time ever since the promo video dropped, after some issues with actually getting my hands on it, here we are. Squarepusher's new project centers around a team of Japanese robots dubbed the Z-Machines: MACH, the 78 fingered, 12 picked Robot guitarist tested up to 1000 BPM, ASHURA, 22 armed drummer that reminds me a ton of Chris Cunningham's Monkey Drummer and COSMO on Keyborads.

Click for big (1000x1000)
So what exactly do you get when you hand that power over to someone like Tom Jenkinson? Some really interesting results actually, to quote the man himself:

"In this project the main question I’ve tried to answer is ‘can these robots play music that is emotionally engaging?"

And with that, the tracks. It starts particularly mild with some jazzy tinkering that wouldn't sound too out of place on Just A Souvenir or other previous 'Pusher joints. It fits the aim set out in his quote sure, but a common complaint is that there's no reason he couldn't have just done this the conventional way. Which while I can see, won't be valid for much longer.



The second track is the one used in the promo and the one I fell in love with almost instantly, like I did with Plug Me In. Honestly it sums up the entire project nicely: its music with feeling made by robots that also pushes the limits of the technology à la Aphex Twin's Drukqs. Gorgeous in parts, frantic in others, a definite highlight.



Straight after we're back into more experimental territory with another jazzy number. Again it's not particularly complex but as it goes on you can hear SP begin to push things a little more. It's great to hear the evolution in it that isn't simply shredding away at the guitar or simulating some snare rushes on the drums, but its probably not for everyone.



That soon takes a turn though, as much as I loathed the comments on the youtube promo being all "OMG DRAGONFORCE" I fully expected 'Pusher to go mental with that guitar, albeit in his own way. And I wasn't dissapointed. Dissolver reminds me a ton of tunes like The Glass Road and Rotate Electrolyte; this is Squarepusher doing what he does best. The breaks are there, and the tricks he pulls with the guitar are stunning, fast forward to 4:30 for a crash course.



I was again pleasantly surprised at the final track. After all this is ends with a fairly sedate tune that again reminds me of the awesome opener to Shobaleader One, Plug Me In. I've always said 'Pusher has a penchant for making more downtempo stuff, and this is just another string to that bow, a fine and fitting end to the EP.



Has the man achieved his mission statement? from where I'm sitting its a yes, but already I've seen the debate run rampant about whether its 'real' music or not and honestly I don't even care. Over the last 20 years Squarepusher has made downright gorgeous songs like Tommib, out of this world abrasive ones like Steinbolt, he's even made a full on Jazz record. Style is never consistent with Squarepusher, but he manages to keep the same standard of quality throughout and that is praise enough.

Get a copy of Music For Robots from:
Bleep
Amazon
iTunes

-Claude Van Foxbat

Scruffy

I've got some time to kill, and its come to my attention I've only posted Mr. Scruff's later work. So today I'm going to correct that a bit, with some slices from his debut album that was originally self titled, but was cleverly reworked for it's re-issue into Mrs. Cruff. Tracks and more after some of the Scruff man's charming art.

We have the fittingly titled Jazz Potato to set us up. It has the distinction of being one of the first Scruff tracks I heard along with Get A Move On. While having the Jazzier edge of his later work, there is a clear lean towards the beats and bassline side of things, something that will become more prominent in a bit.



This one's a bit more explicit with the beats and basslines angle, saying that there is still liberal use of jazzy samples and other bits and bobs to keep it fresh, hence the title. There's a wealth of material on his debut LP, the re-issue only has 2 tracks out of twelve with a run time less that 5 minutes, which can make it a bit difficult to listen through the whole thing in one sitting.

And finally we get to the meat of my point, there a few tracks like Limbic Funk in Scruff's later LPs, and the same applies to earlier tracks like Sea Mammal and Bass Baby. It does make the few that there are wuite nice to listen to tough, so enjoy. Fun Fact: according to the liner notes; Scruff's debut required little to no mastering when he sent it off, and is pretty much pressed as-is.



And finally, I thought I'd share a little gem I came across the other day, taken from a Japanese compilation of remixes of the Cowboy Bebop OST comes this. There were some interesting ones on there for sure, including one from AFX's long time chum Luke Vibert, but Scruff nails it once again. It probably helps that the OST was pretty Jazzy to begin with, Scruff certainly had fun with this one that's for sure.



Arms, Legs, Everywhere!
- Claude Van Foxbat

A Very Warped History 15: 2008 (1 Of 2)

    Previous Part                                                                                                       Next Part   

We're back on the final stretch now. As I've said before opinions get more and more divided as we move closer to the modern era, but as always I'll just call it as I sees it. This time it's Squarepusher again with the follow up to the pretty damn sweet Hello Everything. As you may already know from previous Warped entries and my Shobaleader One review, this is far from the Square man's original material, which I didn't include in this series just because I didn't own the albums/EPs. I might go back and give 'em an overview when this is done but for now: Just A Souvenir



Right off the bat you'll notice this feels a bit looser than Hello Everything, and is an evolution on the framework set down by the bonus tracks on Hello Everything, Hanningfield Window and Exciton. It's not too shocking if you listen to the albums sequentially, but I imagine it would be quite jarring to jump from Come On My Selector to the much more jazzy tones of this LP.



Just A Souvenir also has a certain degree of humour to it, especially on these vocoded tracks. Now, I've already posted A Real Woman, so this is all that's left. Both tracks have flourishes and sections that make them actually decent despite their slightly strange premises, though I feel this track doesn't have as many standout moments as A Real Woman, but it's early doors and there's more quality to come, so I'll let it slide.



There's a pretty steady rhythm of jazzy interludes and typical Hello Everything era Squarepusher experimentation. The latter are by far the standout here, and this is their first formal introduction. The thundering guitar takes center stage here, and the combination of it with the actual percussion running alongside it leads to a strange outcome. There's no crazy drum rolls or rushes, and the guitars aren't tinkered with as much as on Hello Everything. This has no elements that are trademark Squarepusher, but you can still tell it's Mr. Jenkinson behind the production.



The balance is restored once again with a jazzy interlude. Unfortunately on this album they never really exceed 3 minutes, which is a shame because then they pale in comparison to their speedier tempo-ed brethren which can be anywhere from 4 to 7 minutes a piece. They aren't bad, they're just not especially memorable thaks to their shortness





But its not long before normal programming resumes and everything gets real loud and real fast. I really like the juxtaposition of the dreamy synths and the grinding guitar riffs that is featured on a lot of these tracks, unfortunately there's not a lot to say about them until 'pusher changes it up a bit later. Once again, not bad but there's nothing much to say that I haven't already.



Here's where things get a little bit more interesting and that's a good thing. After the formula laid down by the first two uptempo bits from this LP, the Square man carefully avoids stagnating with one of my favourites that grabs you from the get go. Tensor In Green shares sounds with the other two, but fiddles with the tempo a whole bunch, there are breakdowns, fakeout breakdowns and resurgences up and down this one, all leading up to that glorious face melting climax starting at around 2:50



I have two minds about this track, I properly love the juxtaposed sounds a bit like those on Rotate Electrolyte from Hello Everything, I love the breaks and whatnot that were introduced in the last track. I really, really love the peak when it all comes together a 1:10. Problem is unlike Rotate Electrolyte where the track teases you with that peak, but then plays it out for the rest of the song, this one gives you the peak pretty much straight away and then leaves you wanting it back. This wouldn't be a problem mind, if it wasn't so bloody long! more than a minute is spent on a fadeout that just drags its heels Regardless, it's well worth the price of admission for that part, because it does come back eventually, in brilliant form.



As we pull in the final stops, there's nothing really that signifies an ending, other than the return of back to back interludes, I give it a pass this time though cos it had probably my favourite jazzy bit in there, which I'm gonna use now to play us out. Ending on an entirely different note from the first track is alright and all,but I wish there were a few more Star Time styled tracks on here.



And there you have it, the last Squarepusher album of this series! It's not bad, it's just... spaced oddly. Like you have these psuedo-jazz joints with vocoders and whatnot for the first four or five tracks and then they're gone. There's definitely less memorable material on here than Hello Everything but it makes sense from a sound evolution perspective (the openers are gold). The LP has its moments, they're just a bit all over the place in the tracklist.

A Member Of Society,
-Cladue Van Foxbat.

A Very Warped History 12: 2004

    Previous Part                                                                                                       Next Part   

On a similarly Drum & Bass / Jazz note, here's another Warped entry. This time it's Ultravisitor, the last in the line of Squarepusher's frantic experimental stage that started with Go Plastic. Remember earlier this year where I said in my review of Bibio's Mind Bokeh that it was a bit all over the place in terms of sound? you ain't heard nothin' yet my friend, 'cos Ultravisitor is by far the least cohesive album I have ever heard. But it works, well yeah some of the tracks are pretty much full on abrasive noise, but it's all part of Squarepusher's grand send-off to the experimental style.



This album also has a bit of a gimmick where some of it was actually recorded live, and some of it just has crowd noises spliced in to make it seem live. I don't quite get the idea, but it sounds good so I'll let it slide. Anyway, onto the tracks: It starts innocently enough, with the titular track proving actually quite tame by Squarepusher standards. A far cry from what we'll hear later I assure you.



And to throw you completely off, Mr. Jenkinson throws a jazzy bass solo at you, just for kicks. It's a welcome return to the style that he explored on 1998's Music Is Rotted One Note and would again in 2009 with Solo Electric Bass 1



Again another Jazzy-esque bit that wouldn't be out of place on Music Is Rotted One Note, this one actually reminds me of the track My Sound from that record, and that is one of my all time favourites. This one goes down a treat.



One final guitar solo, not like anything he's done before, both on this album and previous this time. It's very nice in a not-Squarepusher way. It's the calm before the oncoming storm that should be coming riiiiight after this.

br />


Now. The time for Jazz is over. Those nice Guitar pieces you liked so much? They're gone. We're back in frantic Drum & Bass territory à la Go Plastic now. That doesn't stop it being brilliant though. My favourite bit is at 4:11, where the man himself starts spouting some distorted verses that work really well with the backing.



The Go Plastic-esque trend continues, a quiet intro filled with bleeps and boops leading to a cavalcade of sounds flying at you from all directions with spatterings of Bass Guitar later on. It's pretty much textbook Squarepusher for this era.



A return to the jazzy side of things, with a improv drum session leading nicely into familiar territory as heard on earlier tracks. A brief respite from the sound assault that came before it.



It's a similar story for this one, though just when you thought we were back in Jazz land in comes some actual Drum & Bass backing, this is pretty much the style the 'Pusher adopts for the next few albums after this, flowing electronics with a speedy Drum & Bass backing with splashes of Bass solos lathered over the top. It's probably my favourite of all his styles adopted throughout the years.

br />


As we come to the last few tracks of the album, we leave the experimental Drum & Bass behind for good. In it's place is the sequel to Tommib, an ambient number from Go Plastic. Like his mate Aphex Twin, 'Pusher is just as good at chilled out stuff as he is his usual repertoire. A well deserved break from all those breakbeats.



And wrapping the album up, one final guitar piece. No drums, no electronics, no speedy sampled breaks. Just Jenkison and his Guitar together for the last send-off. It's a fitting end, not just for the album but for his experimental work as a whole: it had it's patchy moments, but when it shined, it REALLY shined.



It's funny, this album isn't usually in my standard rotation because I always remember the ultra noise parts split with a few downtempo pieces, but looking through the tracks for ones to post I found it's pretty evenly balanced between the two. His experimental stuff isn't my favourite, that award goes to both the set of albums after this and his early works. Though saying that, it's aged a lot better than Go Plastic in terms of the more experimental stuff as in I find the stuff on here a lot easier to listen to. Next time we have a TON of Boards Of Canada stuff coming up, see you then.

Rearranged Into Plastic Membranes,
-Claude Van Foxbat