Squarepusher
Feed Me Weird Things
(Rephlex)
Straight up, this is one crazy bugger. Feed Me Weird Things is Thomas Jenkinsons first full-length entry (he released a bunch of pretty limited singles before this), and quite an arrival onto the scene it is. Pretty much out-of-nowhere he arrived with his now-named "drill and bass" style and funk fusion signature.
If you haven't heard the guy before, you probably need to march out soon and purchase one of his releases, because you're in for a mind-trip unlike you've probably heard before. He cranks up manic snares into the 300 bpm range and lays down squiggly bass-lines (which he plays like a virtuoso live, I'm told) and other wacky sounds over the top. Not only that, but this disc has such a varying number of styles that it's hard not to find something interesting to like. It's sort of eclectic, but that's what makes it so darn nice.
Things start out with the more laid-back "Squarepusher Theme" on the funky jazz-fusion tip. They get a bit darker on the following track "Tundra" with more creepy ambient noise before the big bass drops and things get a little crazy. Check out "Smedley's Melody" to hear what circus music in the year 2020 will sound like. It's goofy as all hell, but it works. The track "Goodnight Jade" is the most low-key on the album. No frantic drums, just a nice track of ambient about two-thirds of the way through the album to calm you down before things crank up and out on the 4 final tracks.
Overall, I think this release is even better as a whole than Hard Normal Daddy. It's a little less cohesive as a whole album, but makes up for it in the style department. This is simply still some of the craziest music that Squarepusher has ever laid down, and that's saying quite a bit. Fortunately for US music buyers, Rephlex even re-released the album last year as a more mid-priced version so you don't have to shell out the extra dough for the import. It's definitely worth checking out.
Rating: 8
