Electric Universe - Blue Planet

Spirit Zone Recordings/Avatar Records: 1999/2016

I had my eye on this for a long while. Something, anything full-length from Electric Universe, if I'm honest, but this one in particular got my attention whenever I happened upon his Discoggian entries. Is it because of a ton of good will through psy-trance discourse? A frequent namedrop in all the cool discussions? Oh, come on, you should know me well enough by now to know why Blue Planet would be the first Electric Universe album I'd spring for. I really am that shallow sometimes.

This came out at an interesting time for Boris Blenn. The middle child of a remarkable period of productivity from him, where he released three albums in three years under the Electric Universe banner. He was also releasing multiple records as Galaxy and Jupiter 8000, not to mention the odd collaborative project here and there. Even more amazing is Mr. Blenn was doing much of this all on his own, his early Electric Universe partnership with Michael Dressler having come to an end. Does this mean he was on an unstoppable creative streak? Or might that dreaded 'quality control' factor come into play? A little column A, a little column B?

I actually may have lucked out in grabbing 'the blue one' first out of all these Electric Universe outings. Between this, Waves and Divine Design, Blue Planet has the most diversity going for it, Boris branching out from your usual psy-trance trappings. Unfortunately for me, however, that wasn't what I was after, wanting more spaced-out goa the likes of Love Is Not A Crime. I get some of that here, sure, but coupled with drab stabs at tribal-prog and... big beat?

Okay, it was the year 1999, and breaks were super-trendy, but after four tracks of various psy, Rock Da House comes out of nowhere, sounding like it should be in a This Is... compilation. It's got shades of The Chemical Brothers, but all the attempts at being block-rockin' feel flat, an experiment in genre dabbling that simply doesn't mesh with its surroundings. Oh well, at least it isn't as dreadfully dull as The Tribal Session.

That all said, at least these tracks give me something to talk about beyond the typically positive psy-trance platitudes. You get the acid outings (Fly, Renania, The Space Dimension), the soaring space rockers (Meteor), and the downtempo cuts at the end (Lovesciene, Journey Into Outer Space). Nothing wrong with any of these tunes, but little that deviates from the norm of Electric Universe's discography either. From a personal standpoint, I was disappointed Blue Planet didn't have anything as dope as Love Is Not A Crime, but the album's best tracks are worthy companions.

And I really can't fault Boris from branching out a little either. It's just when you compare his genre explorations to that of the likes of Juno Reactor or Eat Static, it's hard to not come away underwhelmed. Electric Universe fits in a lane he's plenty adept at, no need to stray from it.

Solar Fields - Blue Moon Station

Ultimae Records: 2003/2008

For the longest time, this was my number two album from Magnus. Heck, maybe even number one? Mutual tie with Movements, at least. Regardless, it came bundled with most of Solar Fields' albums in a vintage Ultimae Records bulk deal, and when I played them all, Blue Moon Station stood out the most to me. I can't recall exactly why, just some loose memory of it easily grabbing my attention through the duration, a dynamic outing compared to his other efforts (Movements notwithstanding). Also, I felt it was the most 'psy-dubby' record in Solar Fields' discography, a major plus in my books. Yet, I haven't listened to Blue Moon Station since the first time I alphabetically cycled through my music collection, nearly a decade ago now. What gives?

Likely because I've given all his other albums more spins in the intervening years, determined to win me over in the same manner as my perceived big two. I needn't return to Blue Moon Station any time soon, because it's greatness is already confirmed, thus could sit on my shelves for special occasions. I think that may have had a negative effect though, its details slipping from my memory, such that I went into it in the here and now having almost no recallection of its musical details anymore. Ooh, does this mean I get to experience Blue Moon Station all over again, as though it were a brand new, undiscovered Solar Fields album?

Sadly, not really, my expectations for what I did remember mostly dashed. For sure I still enjoyed what I heard on Blue Moon Station, it just wasn't the wizz-bang, 'OMG' record I somehow had built within my memory. Like, where in the world did I get it in my head that this was heavy on the psy-dub elements? Some prog-psy, sure, but ain't nothing Shponglely on here, nosiree. I'm assuming it's the opening track, Confusion Illusion, that caused that, erm, confusing illusion of this being an album of psy-dub. There's tribal drums and swirly sounds and ethnic samples, all things you associate with the genre, but not so much Solar Fields.

Nay, we come to a Magnus joint for those ultra feel-good melodies, and Blue Moon Station has them, though not in as high quantity as I recall. If anything, they feel a little restrained, teased out with lengthy, almost empty sounding tracks. Magnetic Air is remarkably spacious, feeling like you're breathing clean, purified atmosphere, followed by an eruptive Majestic Feeling. Ah, there's the opulent Solar Fields stylee.

The album mostly alternates between downtempo pieces and prog-psy numbers, which can leave Blue Moon Station a little jerky in flow to some listeners. Except for the final stretch, after the titular cut. Planet Zoo does something a touch psy-dubby (I wasn't imagining things!), Third Time goes right mellow again, and closer Swimming With Stones goes ultra-mellow. It's all quite nice, but doesn't remain in the ol' noggin quite so well as the earlier cuts. Guess Movements remains top dog, then. It stuck the landing.

The Herbaliser - Blow Your Headphones

Ninja Tune: 1997

Is this The Herbaliser's break-out album? Well, it's got A Mother on it, the tune that opened up Kruder & Dorfmeister's contribution to the DJ-Kicks series, which counts for something. So much so, that it just might be Jake and Ollie's most well-known song, which is remarkable considering it wasn't released as a single, nor made the cut on their 2010 retrospective compilation Herbal Tonic. Still, it must have been popular enough for them to include two versions of it on here, the other titled Another Mother. This is also the point when the DJing duo started expanding their sound from strict jazzy trip-hop exercises, incorporating actual musicians and lyricists. Okay, the musicians part was more for the tours at this stage in The Herbaliser's lifespan, but the lyricists, they be here.

More so though, this was about the time Ninja Tune itself started breaking out as an indie label with real potential, a promising growing roster that held more than whatever project Coldcut and crew was up to. True, they were riding on that 'electronica' wave that threw trip-hop favourite Mo'Wax into the pie, but exposure was exposure, even if it was in the backwash of everything else getting the hype. The Herbaliser benefited from this no less, though that aforementioned K&D rub didn't hurt either.

If anything, Blow Your Headphones captures the sound folks would come to associate with the label for nearly a decade after. That's either its greatest strength or an unfortunate weakness, depending on how you come into this album. Great, if you love the classic Ninja Tune trip-jazz funk-hop sounds, and enjoy consuming it from an era it was still quite fresh. Or you found it to grow rather stale after a while, and this is just a reminder that the label had a real tough time evolving as the years wore on. Actually, that's hardly accurate at all, the Ninja posse including many unique artists in the coming decade. Could they help it if their biggest stars and most prominent compilation contributors came from this mould? Okay, maybe a little – all about that sweet licensing exposure, amirite?

So the nu-hop acid-scratch vibes dominate, with tracks like both Mothers, Ginger Jumps the Fence, and Shorty's Judgement leading the charge. A couple tracks (Put It On Tape, Shocker Zulu) slow things right down into near illbient waters, plus a whole pile of interstitial tracks litter about. There's a jazz-hop cut in Saturday Night with some of that rappity-rap going on, but the bulk of the lyricism on Blow Your Headphones features What? What? She also goes by Run Run Shaw, Tsidi Ibrahim, and Jean Grae. With the jazz influences getting ultra-thick on her cuts (The Blend, New + Improved, Bring It), I can't help but think I'm listening to some of Guru's Jazzmatazz selections. I suspect The Herbaliser sensed it too, the beats they provide her quite indebted to DJ Premier. Well, except that pure beatnik-gangsta poetry outing in Hardcore. Weird one, that.

Eastern Dub Tactik - Blood Is Shining (Original TC Review)

Waveform Records: 2001

(2021 Update:
I feel like a right idiot-jerk reading this back now, in that I inexplicably and completely neglected mentioning any Indian influence here. I have no idea why. Was I so utterly berift of cultural exposure that I couldn't recognize any? I mean, the Middle East certainly was more prominent on everyone's minds in the mid-'00s, but c'mon, man. I even made a tacky joke about it right in the brief!

This album still bumps mighty good though. I never fail getting hype hearing all these big-ass beats and ear-wormy hooks again, even after over-playing it something stupid way back when. Oh yes, this was another one of those CDs I was carrying a torch for, often whenever local festival goers would go on about some local hero. They'd be all like, "Isn't Bassnectar the greatest thing ever?" And I'd be like, "He's okay, but he doesn't play anything as dynamic as what's on here!" And they'd be like, "What? Who are you? I was talking to my friends over here?" And I'd be like "......." Good times.)


IN BRIEF: Funky fresh bloopity bloop, Allah.

Uh oh. Middle Eastern themes? A name with the word ‘dub’ in it? A promo spiel using adjectives like ‘worldly’ and ‘exotic’? Could this possibly be yet another unnecessary ‘world beat’ album consisting of noodly downtempo collages of Western and Eastern styles, where it’s blatantly apparent one or the other is in total control? Hardly.

Rather, producer Aaron Dysart has taken elements of East and West, and fused them together so his music wouldn’t sound out of place in either locale. Eastern Dub Tactik is as smooth a blend of funk rhythms, Arab harmonies, dubby psychedelia, and slummy street attitude as I’ve ever heard.

The reason for Dysart’s success is in his music’s simplicity. He doesn’t get bogged down in elaborate atmospherics or complicated arrangements. Tracks get down to business in short time, delivering all the pieces early on and having fun with them for the duration. And while some producers may overindulge embellishing their tracks’ components for tedious lengths (hi, Laswell!), Dysart keeps things concise and to the point, rarely letting a track go on for more than necessary. This does create a slight problem though. Because of their simplicity, tracks come and go without the kind of engagement reserved for intuitive songwriting; they come across as fun diversions but little else.

Such a release will often warrant a three star rating from me but you’ve probably noticed that extra half-star there by now (don’t lie; I know a bunch of you skip to the bottom first). So what, you ask, warrants that above above-average rating? Simply put, sheer diversity.

Even despite the similar themes and arrangements, no two tracks sound alike on here. Each cut has Dysart trying something different and aside from the plodding Day Of Despair and uneventful Asra, his works continuously surprise. And, whoo... are they ever catchy to boot. With their short running times and quick loops, breaks and hooks easily get lodged into your noggin.

The opening chunk of Blood Is Shining sees Dysart’s fusion at its most, shall we say, united; everything blends together so no influence overwhelms the other. The sounds of plinky organs, funky guitar licks, sitar strums, whispery woodwinds, and Arab vocals flow so smoothly, you’d think they’d all been a match since their cultural beginnings. Throw in a few turntable tricks and chunky beats with serious horsepower, and you can’t help but groove along.

Ah yes. Those beats. I’m not sure how much overdubbing Dysart did for them, but they pack a thick punch. Most of his breaks are time-worn from funk’s forefathers, so they’ll be quite familiar to anyone who enjoys hip or trip hop. They certainly are brisker than those styles though, and carry enough bass to piss off the neighbors. And even here Dysart melds cultures, gleefully allowing Indian drums to jam alongside the funk bands in overdrive. The rhythm heavy tracks - street-savvy Cultural Wisdom, the stompingly fun Brothers & Sisters, and screwy time-signatured Wicked Style - are irresistibly fun, and will light any dancefloor up. Well, maybe not Wicked Style as much, since it’s break isn’t quite as accommodating to folks weaned on standard rhythms; those funky organ licks will definitely have you trying though.

A few downtempo tracks help add to this album’s diversity as well. The aforementioned Asra doesn’t do much of note, but Like This, soaked in psychedelia, is a welcome dubby interlude. Meanwhile, closer Five ‘N’ Dub’s ominous atmosphere mixes nicely with chunky, clumping beats.

The odd-man out on Blood Is Shining is Eastern Winds, where Dysart allows the Eastern influences to totally dominate. Even the rhythms follow an Arabian pattern rather than the funky ones heard throughout. Fair game, I say, as it adds some vintage spice to the proceedings.

I suppose I should also mention the political content of this release. Actually, I was pleasantly surprised to hear it kept to a minimum: a couple sampled quotes looped at points, but no more. Dysart’s liner notes don’t dwell on the ills of society either, merely paying respect to those who’ve done what they could to change it. In this age of acts sacrificing musical content for sloganeering, it’s nice to hear less of it in tracks that Zack de la Rocha wouldn’t sound too out of place on. Then again, this was released in 2001, a year when music and politics weren’t quite so chummy as they are now.

Yes, this is an older release and, truthfully, there isn’t anything on here that makes it a necessary grab, fans of dubby breaks or otherwise. Even the melding of East and West, though exceptionally done, isn’t revolutionary. But regardless of these facts, should you decide to commit debit to disc, Blood Is Shining makes a worthwhile diversion from stressful days.

Written by Sykonee for TranceCritic.com, 2006. © All rights reserved.

The Micronauts - Bleep To Bleep

Science: 2000

This was one of those CDs that seemed sat in every store. For the life of me, I can't understand why. Or rather, I get 'how' it ended up in music retailers and pawn shops, just not why The Micronauts got such a significant promotional push in the first place. Certainly nothing on this here debut mini-album would suggest a huge cross-over event in the making, this music brash and noisy, like some kind of put-on by misters Christophe Monier and George Issakidis (who left the duo shortly after Bleep To Bleep's release).

Digging around their Discoggian data, they had a respectable run of items leading up to this, both as The Micronauts and in other ventures. I distinctly recall hearing their acid stomper single The Jazz in a Chemical Brothers mix CD. Christophe had a tidy run with Pascal R as Impulsion, getting in on that stompin' acid and hard house that was quite popular with French producers in the back half the '90s. It also seems that Lord Discogs really loves tying these guys with that scene, throwing about recommendations for Daft Punk and Cassius. Hm, it's coming together, the Micronauts story: promising single, associated with the big movers and shakers of the era... How could the mighty Virgin not sign these guys, though I'm not sure if the label had the utmost confidence in them. Nay, better to shuffle them off to a sub-label, like that Science print that was a dumping ground for Photek and Source Direct records.

Even partial Virgin promotion was enough to get onto a tonne of store shelves though. So there it sat, a quirky little item on the slightly cheaper end of CDs, being a mini-album and all. A few curious glances are thrown its way, wondering what that might be, what with no names or titles on the cover art. Some might recognize the name on the spine from singles like The Jag or Get Funky Get Down, but none of that is on here. A few, daring souls decide to give this a demo spin anyways, their reward an assault of hard house beats, garish acid, and a cacophony of electro noise. Good gracious, whatever is this racket?

Baby Wants To Bleep, in all its permutations on this CD, almost feels like a joke. Like, The Micronauts wanted to make the most obnoxious sounds they could within acid house's parameters, extending it into a sort of jam session in the process. It's rather fascinating in of itself, and could even be pointed at as a precursor to the Ed Banger aesthetic that would come to dominate much of French techno half a decade later. Trying to come into this blind, however, would almost certainly turn folks off. Not to mention one of the longest tracks, Bleeper_0+2, is just a noise experiment no one with any aspiration of commercial intent would dare put on an album. Time to hunker the project down then, let the rest of clubland catch up.

Various - Blade - Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture

TVT Records: 1998

Plenty has been said how this movie ushered in a new era of comic book adaptations. That it rescued a quickly diminishing genre of film from the downward slide of Schumacher Batman into something once again credible and financially lucrative. That the cinematic juggernaut known as the MCU would never have gotten on the beachhead had this relatively unknown creative property of theirs been a box-office dud. Yes, all these things have been brought up by people who make it their business/career/hobby discussing such things, but that's not what I'm doing here.

Instead, I wish to make my own hot-take proclamation about Blade. More specifically the soundtrack: this was the last of a small but vital run of scores that people intimately associate with exactly one techno track, which everyone had to rush and buy because of needing that one techno track.

You know the type I'm talking about. Your 'Mortal Kombat Theme'. Your 'Trainspotting Theme'. Your, um, The Saint Theme. For a time in the '90s, a wave of movies featured some big thumping anthem as its centrepiece of music, forever tying song and cinema to specific scenes. For sure there were plenty of soundtracks that featured electronic music, before and well after Blade, but can you instantly identify That One Track out of any of them? No, Zion doesn't count. Even if folks do remember that scene (for all the wrong reasons), they definitely can't recall how its techno track sounds, preferably forgetting anything associated with the Matrix sequels.

You can't shake the image of Blade's blood rave and the pounding acid of Pump Panel's rub of New Order's Confusion though. There were plenty of other great artists with tunes in the movie – Photek, DJ Krush, Source Direct, Junkie XL, Solitaire ...Polygon Window? - but its this specific one everyone knows. I just have to say “that movie Blade”, and you instantly hear the acid again. Aww, and here I am, thinking Expansion Union's Playing With Lightning is just as dope.

“But wait!” you say, “what's with all those artists you mentioned above? I have the CD and only a couple of them are in there. It's mostly a bunch of hip-hop!” Right you are, oh man of straw. In fact, only four tracks as featured in the movie made the cut of fifteen here. Save a couple clubbier offerings from Mantronik and Roger Sanchez bridging the gap, everything comes from the lands of gangsta rap.

Though as they are tracks 'inspired by' the movie, it feels more appropriate to call this 'gothic rap'. Lots of raps about Blade, hunting vampires, wars between heaven and hell... pretty cool stuff, with a good mix of stars and unknowns. Gang Starr is here! KRS-One is here (breaking fourth walls, no less)! Mystikal is here (his track was great at showing off the bass of the JVC Kaboom)! P.A. is... wait, Parental Advisory? Oh, wow, they were also on the first rap soundtrack I ever owned. Small world.

ACE TRACKS: January 2021

It feels weird, nearing the actual end of reviewing every single item in my music collection. I've started on the back-half of my 'B' albums, which will be followed by another catch-up pile of backlog, then it's on to the remaining 'C' albums. That will be it. Well, save for whatever else I gather in that meantime, which will likely be a fair bit as usual, but my main, sorted library will have been truly and completely reviewed. And not a decade too soon!

I know I keep saying this every other year, but I think this is achievable within 2021. Of course, I thought that in 2020, before 2020 2020'd all over the place. And who's to say 2021 doesn't have a whole pile of nut-fuckery up its sleeve just yet? For sure it's already been an eventful first month, but it hasn't impacted this person to quite the same degree as others. I mean, this is the first time in a long while that I haven't had my rent go up again. That counts for something, right? Thanks, COVID! Anyway, here are the ACE TRACKS for the first 31 days of this bold new year:


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:

None!

Yep, it took ninety-two of these playlists, but we finally have one where every single album I've reviewed for it is available on Spotify! Mind, some of the older ones might be complete now too, what with things having been added since. Heck, when I started, you couldn't even get The Beatles on Spotify. Oh, before I forget...

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 8%
Percentage Of Rock: 31%
Most “WTF?” Track: Still the Viking metal stuff. It'll never make sense in a playlist supposedly in service of an electronic music blog.

Outlier metel music aside, this is a nice, diverse assortment of tunes, given the smaller sample size. It probably helps that I'm once again reaching into my long-standing collection of music, where a quarter-century of CD gathering has resulted in some variety. Guess it's true that the older you get, the more narrow your interests become.

Or the inability to brose pawn shops has left me unable to impulse buy of whatever catches my eye. Can be that too.

Method Man & Redman - Blackout!

Def Jam 2000: 1999

I'm not sure where this album sits in the Grand Rap Pantheon anymore. I recall it was a big deal during the lead-up. Meth and Red had a huge collaborative hit in How High, dropping in that oh-so glorious year of hip-hop fire, 1995. And while Method Man's solo career stalled throughout the '90s, Redman kept a steady clip of respected albums going, so a proper full-length outing from the two would be hotly anticipated. Only, in typical Johnny Blaze fashion, the LP dropped nearly half a decade after How High lit up, causing some to lose interest in this collaboration in the process. Let's call those people 'sour pusses'.

So Blackout! finally dropped, and even though folks were wondering if Method Man had fallen off, or if any Wu project could have the same fire as earlier in the decade, it sold buckets. Clearly they still liked Method Man anytime he held the mic or guested on other verses. Surely his charisma would properly shine with an equally skilled microphone commander at his side, the two trading sharp barbs and chin-checka' raps and such. Or the two had been getting so smoked out in the interim, putting this off for so long, that the final result was an album that was good enough, but not the head-banging classic everyone expected. Again, I'm not sure how Blackout! is regarded these days, but man, did it ever feel like a whiff of THC-thick air bellowing out of a bong mere weeks after this came out. They came, they smoked, they rapped, they partied, then they kinda' forgot what the fuss was about in the first place. Oh well, time to start shopping about that script for their own Cheech & Chong movie.

I sense Meth and Red would be fun live, most of the tracks on here little more than party anthems for them to rappity-rap over. Yeah, there's some witty wordplay and fun puns about, but these two aren't going to get super deep with the heavy political or lyrical miracles. Just two stoners going on about how dope they are, how dope their smoked dope be, and how much they love gettin' down with them ladies and hos. So long as the beats bang, they can rap about any ol' nonsense. And that's where I feel this album stumbles some.

There's quite the assortment of Wu and Def Squad personnel behind the consoles on Blackout!, including RZA, Erick Sermon, Mathematics, and Reggie Noble. Even Rockwilder shows up (on Da Rockwilder), while features have Ghostface, Street Life, LL Cool J, Missy Elliot, and Ja Rule, when he was still credible. Seems all fine, but neither guest rapper or beat producer do much to outshine whatever Method Man and Redman are going on about. Which would be fine, if the duo were dropping relentless fire throughout. Instead, all I hear is the hot flame in a burning bowl of dank bud, soon puffed out into a stoned stupor. Seems appropriate.

36 - Black Soma

3six Recordings: 2017

Obviously this was an instant-purchase for yours truly. Mr. Huddleston taking his 36 project ever further into 'space music' territory after the Sine Dust sessions? Just inject the music straight into my occipital cortex! That wasn't enough for Dennis though. He had to go ahead and include the Sine Dust and Tomorrow's Explorers EPs in with Black Soma as a bonus second CD. My God! Those two are super-high in my “Records I'd Buy For A Record Collection I'll Never Have” list, and now I have them in a physical format anyway? Sure, it'd be nice if their original artwork was included with the inlay, but I'll still take 'em.

Before getting into those extras though, let's get into the album proper. As mentioned, Black Soma is something of a continuation of the space inspired EPs that sprung off from Void Dance and shut up, just take my money already. Or is this following on from themes set up by Lithea and Dream Tempest, what with the similar artwork? Seriously though, this is a bit of a different focus 36 has taken from before, most of his albums generally all about those mood setters and emotional gut-punches. While this one hardly lacks in those departments either, there's more of a sense of place and imagery going on here, ambient music less about the abstract atmosphere than it is painting a setting. Or at least, so long as you read the track titles. Who knows what wayward themes you could conjure without some guiding hint.

So while the titular opener mostly features choir pads among 36's usual string and pad tones, follow-up Black Sustain flows on that with, well, sustained pad drones, gradually building and escalating with opulent grandeur. Never one to hold back out from the gate, that Dennis. Black Halcyon goes for the sentimental jugular, with a touch of piano that just might have you reminded of the opening of that Orbital track. Black Shore features the sound of waves lapping upon the beach. Black Sun and Black Future imparts something of a reflective tone, contemplation of our place in all this emptiness. Black Sleep is pure tranquility, while finale Black Cascade shimmers like several points of light washing down on you.

And... it's over, just like that. Aww, was just getting warmed up. Fortunately, there's that tasty second CD to detail, though in some ways I feel like I've talked about this a bunch already. Sine Dust and Sun Riders both had extra love when I covered Sine Dust Versions, though Tomorrow's Explorers is all original music, including one of his longer pieces in the titular cut. Wish I could say I was equally enraptured by these tracks as the Sine Dust ones, but the more traditional use of string pads, and even a little Berlin School action, leave these feeling less effective in reducing my soul to a puddle of melancholic-goo. Hey, if that's the 'worst' criticism I can give this album, how can anyone complain?

Bonobo - Black Sands

Ninja Tune: 2010

Migration may have been Bonobo's deliberate attempt at having crossover success, but Black Sands may remain his most popular album. Never mind this one is owned by over twelve-thousand members of Discogs' community, well outpacing Migration's 'mere' eight-thousand. On a track-by-track basis, Spotify's streaming numbers puts Black Sands' songs properly above Migration's, though the King Bonobo cut goes to The North Borders' Cirrus. All that pre-hype as a lead single in the follow-up to Black Sands no doubt helped its cause. Of course, this all could be explained by the fact Black Sands has a seven year head start on Migration to rack up such numbers, but I prefer going with the theory that Black Sands is a better overall album.

For sure it's an album in transition. The first clutch of Bonobo records mostly stuck to that traditional Ninja Tune-y trip-hop vibe that was so prevalent in the early '00s. They were good enough to gain a dedicated following, but not enough to branch beyond that. By the late '00s, however, it was abundantly clear change was afoot in UK downtempo-land: trip-hop was finally on the way out, jazzy urban soul and future garage was in. Simon Green had already explored some of the former on Days To Come, and 2010 was as good as any year to start dabbling in the latter. Just in time to hit those lucrative festival circuits playing nothing but the latter!

Actually, there isn't that much more of it here, Black Sands offering a wide variety of old and new Bonobo. For sure the album hits you right out the gate in Kiara with the wonky rhythm and chirpy chiptune bleeps while a Far East string melody plays along, but follow-up Kong is pure vintage Ninja Tune hop-step, steady-cool groove. Then Eyesdown gets in on that skippity-shuffle beat while Andreya Triana croons along, while El Toro has fun with acid jazz. Wait, really? Yah, really. Call it 'electro swing' if you must, but we all know what it really is.

The genre hopping/fusions continue throughout Black Sands, each track hitting upon their own unique vibe, the album never losing its way for the ride. Did I mention a lot of this is done with instrumentation performed by Bonobo himself? Yeah, there's a number of featured guests, especially on El Toro and the titular finale. Yet tunes are arranged such that it kinda'-sorta' still sounds like sample-based downtempo music, with subtle electronic gimmickry enhancing the studio sessions. Heck, on the aforementioned titular finale, a big ol' cinematic jazz outing with contributions from Jack Baker (drums), Mike Lesirge (flute and clarinet), Mike Simmonds (violin), Alan Hardiman (trombone) and Ryan Jacob (trumpet), Mr. Green also plays guitar, piano, double bass, xylophone, mandolin, and harmonium. Ahh, the wonders of multi-track recording.

Does this mean that Black Sands has converted me to the Bonobo Brotherhood? Well, it got me checking out more of his earlier output, which is all any artist can hope for from late adopters.