Accidents do happen, but Matthew Herbert’s mishaps pretty much always come out good. 2003 was, arguably, his best year yet-the Big Band project exceeded even his expectations, he married singer Dani Siciliano, and he found time to compile You Are Here. All that the 16 artists featured here have in common is that they’re labelmates, and they show a willful disregard for the “rules” of musicmaking-which is probably what endeared them to Herbert in the first place. 8 Doogymoto, John Matthias, Soft Pink Truth, Dr. Rockit, Phil Parnell, Max De Wardener, and the aforementioned Big Band show us where it’s at.
Chops Virtuosity
With a title this ballsy, sample-shunning Chops’s new album better be good-and it is. Bred on a strict diet of Philly soul, the Mountain Brothers’ boardsman reaches out to some big names, coaxing energetic verses from Planet Asia on the cartoonish “Niggarachi” and Kanye West on the dainty, piano-dappled “Changing Lines.” Indeed, Chops loves his keys, whether employing them as melodic engine or atmospheric accentuation. But when he grips the mic on “U Know Who It Is,” the Magnificent Butcher flexes a vocal style far less impressive than his beatmaking skills. Earth to all MCs: enough with the similes!
Egg Don’t Postpone Joy
Destined to become one of the best labels in the minimal sphere, Mutek_Rec launches its catalogue with Don’t Postpone Joy, a sprightly exercise in herk ‘n’ jerk house for the geektronic massive. Together known as Egg, producers Julien Roy and Guillaume Coutu-Dumont stick close to the glitch script, pairing hacked-up kicks and florid flamenco guitar loops on the exemplary “Clara.” Best of all might be “Rouge De Base,” which is driven by an electrofied pulse, an urgent bass riff and an effervescent synth melody. Far from classic, consider this one a confident first step and suitably tangy foretaste of big things to come.
Various Artists I Like It
Germany’s Compost has tossed traditional DJ-mix compilations out on their collective ear, at least temporarily. On I Like It, four veteran DJs pick their four all-time favorite songs. On this first go-round, Compost’s picks are eclectic, to say the least: Munich’s electro-loving DJ Hell, Austrian producer/DJ Peter Kruder (Tosca, K&D), Compost figurehead Michael Reinboth (Beanfield), and Munich DJ Theo Thonnessen (Into Somethin’). The results are interesting-many of the artists’ picks are obscure tunes from the ’80s and ’90s, and the accompanying information cards are enjoyable reads. However, the disjointed, non-mixed format isn’t necessarily compelling enough to warrant more than a few listens.
Various Artists Joel Mull: Gazometertraxx: Water
Melody and relaxation are the last things that come to mind when listening to Joel Mull. The Swedish techno DJ & producer is known for his punishing DJ sets and Gazometertraxx: Water is no exception. Recorded live at the Gazometer rave in Vienna in March 2003, the 18-track compilation features thunderously brutal techno by Mull, Marco Bailey, Hardcell, DJ Rush and James Ruskin, among others. Pummeling techno can be an acquired taste, and while this is a seamless mix, listening to the rapid-fire rhythms at home just can’t compete with a booming club sound system. For heads only.
Various Artists Fat Beats Volume 3
This Fat Beats volume boasts some big-name talent: Big Daddy Kane, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Just Ice. Unfortunately, the A-list talent has turned in C-list material. While it’s not a wack song, Kane’s collaboration with DJ Premier is about 10 years too late, and Just Ice, sadly, must add his name to the list of old-schoolers whose comebacks didn’t work. There are bright spots to be found-see J-Zone’s biting NBA sum-up “Alley Oop ’04”-but the good moments are overshadowed by the not-so-good ones; the best moment on the disc, DITC’s “Day One,” has been available for over five years now. Fat Beats Vol. 3 comes off more like a cash-in than a collection.
Jean Grae The Bootleg of the Bootleg EP
Goddamn, Jean Grae has done it again. Grae’s the illest female on the mic, but it ain’t even about being in the “female” subdivision; she will smoke a whole lot of MCs regardless of X or Y chromosomes. Boasting a flow that spills forth endlessly and effortlessly, Grae hits all the benchmarks of a great lyricist: funny, insightful, clever and gifted with words. The production on this disc isn’t stellar, but it is solid, and a workable beat is all Jean needs to get busy. Throw in a big-ass bonus track of freestyles, and this is a straight-up sure shot.
Derrick Carter Poverty Deluxe: Tone Theory vs. Oneiro
Derrick Carter is a genius-no, the master-of Chicago house, so it hurts when he makes a commercial-sounding album. We want to like Poverty Deluxe, so we listen hard for his signature edge, waiting for syncopated beats to go on an acid flashback (“My Tiger is Satiated”), and Starship Troopers to wrest control of the bongo drums with their rayguns (“The Stalker”). But we can’t shake the feeling that the best part of this LP is the Eddie Murphy sample in the opening track. Go listen to Squaredancing in a Roundhouse, and pretend this never happened.
Otaku No Denki The Future Played Backwards
Though their name suggests otherwise, Otaku No Denki is not a Japanese girl band, but a trio of white guys (Chris McCabe, Joey Cannon and Dean Salleyman) from Liverpool. The confusion is understandable, since the futuristic playfulness of their first album, The Future Played Backwards, would feel right at home in a neon-lit Tokyo pachinko parlor. The tinny synth melodies of “Calculator” and “My First Telescope” are bright and shiny like pennies on the tongue, and even the moody “Tower” can’t fully escape Otaku No Denki’s computer-generated optimism. The Future… is like one big nod to Kraftwerk’s 1981 epic, Computer World.
Chicago Underground Trio Slon
Cornetist Rob Mazurek’s Chicago Underground group has assembled a compelling post-bop canon while fluctuating between anything from a duo to an orchestra. The Trio, rounded out by bassist Noel Kupersmith and drummer Chad Taylor, is where he sounds most at home. Mazurek nimbly hops from beat to beat on “Shoe Lace,” evoking cornet legend Don Cherry’s duels with Billy Higgins. Slon is no musty throwback, though; while the menacing drones of “Kite” protest too much (and leave Mazurek sounding tentative), Taylor’s rolling percussion exhibits touches of both jungle and Elvin Jones, and the band’s stretches of electronica sound admirably unforced.
