ALBUM REVIEWS
Jesse Rose Anil Chawla and Dale Anderson
What Do You Do If You Don’t? Roadhouse
Dubsided GU Music
Not all roses Shifting but sumptuous journey
With his sets at Berlin’s Panorama Bar, From the opening crashes of its echo-cham-
Jesse Rose has pretty much torn up the ber drums you know ‘Roadhouse’ ain’t going
house music rulebook of late. There’s one to play ball. Morphing, shifting, twisting and
general rule even he can’t break though turning, it will take you down one path before
— house music’s long-standing diffi culty suddenly slinging you fast down another.
with translating into a coherent artist ‘Wilmot Street’ is all deep-house chords and
album. bubbling bass, while its successor — ‘Are
Interestingly, unlike many producers We All Together?’ — is all sparkling proto-
who come unstuck, his attempts at songs progressive pop.
aren’t the problem — both the Hot Chip Then on ‘Leftorium’, the album suddenly
collaborations and David E. Sugar’s decides it’s going to kick back, laying down
appearance on ‘Miss Taker’ are brilliant. a gorgeous, lazy, widescreen-house lounger.
But whilst bouncing with cheeky beats The album continues darting off down differ-
and ideas, the clubbier tracks like ‘Pop ent paths, before somehow arriving at ‘The
Yer Porn’ simply seem to peter out once Mash’ — which harks back to early Chemicals
removed from the dancefl oor and placed and Crystal Method sounds thanks to its epic
on the home stereo and there’s just no builds, urgent sirens and cut-up vocals. Once
excuse for the shameless rip-off of Mr. again you wonder how you got there but
Scruff’s ‘Get A Move On’ that is ‘A Night you’re nonetheless pleased you did.
MONE
Y
At The Dogs.’ If ‘What Do You Do If You But the real surprise isn’t the constant
Don’t?’ was mixed it would be amazing. swerving… it’s the seamless ease with which
SHO
T!
But, the problem is, it isn’t. Paul Clarke ‘Roadhouse’ makes sense of it all.
Dan Kinasz
Josh Wink
When A Banana Was
Just A Banana
Ovum
Roots true but with
plenty of new branches The Quemists Agoria
Join The Q
Go Fast (Music From The Motion
One thing that we have always loved
Ninjatune
about Josh is that he has always kept it
Picture)
real. Despite the fact that he infi ltrated
Different
the mainstream with his defi nitive ‘95 cut
The production values and arrangement
Brash rock d&b crossover
‘Higher State Of Consciousness’, he has
are archetypal Wink but the synth-work
Much like Pendulum, The Qemists have roots
Outpacing the past
never once played on that fact to make
and rhythm is akin to modern Jeff
in rock bands and are trying to break the d&b
easy cash-ins or, worse still, calculated
Samuel or Gabriel Ananda works. Next
sound out of the underground with a fusion
For a producer best known for storming
shifts towards trendy sounds-of-now.
single ‘Counter Clock’ is propelled by
that has all the live power of a full-throttle
techno classics like ‘La Onzième Marche’
But what is even better is that is by some
signature Wink hi-hats and low-in the-
rock outfi t — dancing that fi ne line between
and ‘Code 1026’, Sebastien Devaud’s latest
great karmic effect of staying roots
mix syncopated drums but it’s constantly
young mass appeal and credible niche sound
album is a surprise. With the exception of the
true, the time inevitably comes when
shouldering mind-bending M-nus-esque
in the process.
soaring rave riffs of ‘Memole Bua’, the big
the populous decides that groove-
sonics and Audion-like psychedelic
Certain tracks are accomplished missions like
room electro techno of ‘Diva Drive’ and ‘Run
ripped, deeply organic house and raw,
growls.
the charged funk riffage of ‘On The Run’ or the
Run Run’, ‘Go Fast’ eschews the dancefl oor
soul-soaked techno return to the fray
The superb ‘Everybody To The Sun’ and
ruffneck jungle groove of ‘When UR Lonely’.
altogether.
to rule the roost. That time is now and,
‘Out All Night’, meanwhile, slant rhythmi-
At other times, however, they sound blatantly
It appears Devaud could fall foul of the
sure enough, Wink is ready and waiting
cally towards the Oslo and Intacto camps
commercial with a generic rock-meets-deebee
conceit that ensnares many techno producers
to reclaim his post as a fi gurehead once
— each track coarse, rolling and hypnotic
sound that was pioneered fi ve years back
who, riding high on the success of a few EPs,
again — simply because he never even
in the vein of Johnny D or Jus’ Ed. Or, in
— ‘Lost Weekend’ is all brash stadium guitar
try their hand at ‘proper artist albums’ or, as
budged. That’s not to say that Josh
fact, Wink himself as essentially on this
riffs, nasal half-chanted vocals and Pendulum
is the case here, soundtracks but fall woefully
hasn’t moved forward or taken heed of
LP he is both himself and many others to
aping drum fi lls that sound straight out of
short. Thankfully, he bucks the trend instead
sounds developing around him. In fact,
great effect.
‘Another Planet’. But then current single ‘Dem
delivering the stunning ambience of ‘Tender
this fourth LP from the Ovum head is a
Setting out to make an LP that dropped
Na Like Me’ comes on with a digital dancehall
Storm’ and ‘Go Fast’, the early ‘70s electronic
perfect example of an artist working to
the pretensions and fucked off the bar-
assault that will have the nu-rave kids sweat-
soundscapes of ‘Pending Between Two Worlds’
their strengths whilst letting new musical
riers, Wink has created the album that
ing and moshing. Is that a bad thing? That’s
as well as proving his song writing skills on
spheres seep into their creations.
most house and techno producers would
probably down to your own perceptions. Or
the bluesy torch song ‘Around the Corner’.
Just take the opening track — the cas-
give their right arm to make.
your age, perhaps. Alex C
Richard Brophy
cading, scuttling ‘Airplane Electronique’.
Dan Kinasz
LONG RANGE
090
www.djmag.com
Madness and Me
Long Range Recordings
DJ470.albums.indd 90 19/1/09 22:02:11
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