After The Wire deemed Sunburned Hand of the Man the leaders of the “New Weird America” in 2003, Four Tet’s Kieran Hebden knew he had to be involved with the experimental collective. Thus, Fire Escape, the newest prog-addition to the Sunburned catalog. Recorded in about four hours in Hebden’s London-based studio The Exchange, Fire Escape then became a massive project for Four Tet’s jazz-minded producer. Hebden took all of the samples and remixed them into a bizarre, post-punk collection that’s more akin to Cabaret Voltaire than a drone-heavy tape-label band.

Performed by a total of ten members, Sunburned’s newest offering finds Casio synths brushing against jazzy live drums, violas and trumpets competing with noisy samples, and heavy percussion all over the place. In addition, the band enlisted Boredoms’ Yamatsuka Eye for the artwork duties, making for one colorful, albeit paranoia-inducing, package. You don’t have to be a diehard experimental fan to appreciate the creative juices flowing here. 

Fire Escape is out in October, 2007 on Smalltown Supersound.

Tracklisting
1. Words To Live By
2. Nice Butterfly Mask
3. What Color Is The Sky In The World You Live In?
4. The Parakeet Beat
5. Captain Knowhere
6. Fire Escape
7. The Wind Has Ears
8. Triple, Double, Everything
9. Raw Backwards