Robert Christgau's Music Criticism Blog - Expert Witness - MSN Music

Odds and Ends 024

It's all bloody electronica now, innit?

By Xgau Feb 19, 2013 2:47AM

Colin Stetson: New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges (Constellation)

As with most new-prog succes d'estimes, these bari-sax patternings avec Laurie Anderson cameos are more original than compelling, but they're also more compelling than most ("The Stars in His Head [Dark Lights Remix]," "Red Horses [Judges II]") ***

Dobie: We Will Not Harm You (Ninja Tune)

Subtler, which for those of us who seek cheap thrills from our let's-call-it-techno seldom means better ("Magenta," "Snap, Crackle & Pop") ***

3:33: In the Middle of Infinity (Parallel Thought)

"Finding themselves lost in unknown territory, the group eventually discovers the existence of what they describe as `spirals'‑-portals leading to different worlds within . . . " ("ITMOI-3," "ITMOI-5") ***

My Bloody Valentine: mbv (mybloodyvalentine.org)

And the dearth was without form and droid, and texture was upon the bass of the beat ("New You," "In Another Way") **

Flying Lotus: Pattern + Grid World (Warp)

Notes for an aural jigsaw puzzle ("Pie Face," "Clay") **

Maga Bo: Quilombo Do Futuro (Crosstalk/Postworld)

Brazil's great internationalist beatmaker it's said, and I can hear that, but note that his two grooviest tracks feature the same girl from Ipanema ("Eu Vim De Longe," "No Balanca Da Canoa") *

Fatboy Slim: Big Beach Bootique Volume V (The End)

Live beats as exciting as their hype men, who can be pretty exciting or, too often, altogether silent ("Clubs," "Get Naked [Fatboy Slim vs Futuristic Polar Bears Remix]") *

Flying Lotus: Until the Quiet Comes (Warp)

Achieves the sopranos-and-tinkle phase of sophisticated aural pansensuality ("Until the Quiet Comes," "Sultan's Request") *

< Back to Expert Witness

109Comments

Newest

Feb 22, 2013 2:24AM

Just listening to the Miles Davis 1969 bootleg set, it strikes me as a tentative step not taken: that in breaking up the Hancock-Carter-Williams quintet, Davis' first instinct was to go more avant-garde (Corea and Holland were playing with Braxton at the time, and DeJohnette had his own avant credentials, although in the long run none of the three would be regarded as avant-gardists). As much as anything else, I hear this in Shorter, who has never sounded so gnarled -- as if he was trying to conjure up Ayler (or maybe Shepp) -- although Corea, despite his instrument, is not playing anything remotely fusion. I also can't say they were very good at it: to my ears, they keep waffling between irritating lines and brilliant ones, suggesting they were great musicians fighting with an alien music. Within a year Davis moved boldly into fusion, and he took Shorter and Corea (at least) with him, and the rest is history -- he spent the next five years making brilliant albums, and they spent the next ten making crappy ones -- but this strikes me as an odd footnote, of historical significance only if you think Davis was a complete genius and not just damn lucky.

By the way, I usually ignore concert hype, but if you're in the NYC area you should know about MOPDTK's new release celebration next Thursday, Feb. 28, at Cornelia Street Cafe. Everyone tells me they're a great band live. I can vouch that their new record, "Slippery Rock," is at the top of my 2013 list.

Bing Search

Odds and Ends 024

It's all bloody electronica now, innit?

about the blogger

find concert tickets

follow msn music

music news

blog roll