Subtlety is the lifeblood of trip-hop and dub step. Its fathers,
techno and hip-hop, are not the subtlest of art forms, nor are
they meant to be. Whilst cirKus has delivered a solid album, with
good production, the product seems more like an improvised Frankenstein
of different musical subtexts. While the creature is, technically,
what you wanted, you’d much rather listen to the specific
aspects than the whole conglomeration and Laylow, ultimately lacks
the refinement of its contemporaries (early Massive Attack, Burial,
etc.).
Dj Kamil (a.k.a. Matt Kent) and Burt Ford (a.k.a. Bogga Bear)
use the contrast between acoustic picking, drum machines, and
record spinning to great effect in the actual production of this
album. The title track is ethereal, with a beautiful drumming
track, as well as impressive backing vocals. Yet, as with most
of the songs in this album, the vocals fail. The lyrics are poorly
written (see You’re such an……), and lack the
subtlety, or for that matter the abstraction, that it could.
The songs have similar structures, and there is a highly defined
aesthetic to this band. Most of the songs have moments of brilliance,
such as the chorus of “Ruff Turf,” and the middle
of “Time for the Whistle.” Yet there is always some
aspect, usually vocally, that you wish you could eliminate. Those
vocals are usually the hip-hop ones that the female sings (the
band refused to give contributors names away because it has “fuck
all to do with music” so “female sings” will
have to do). The production is ultimately what carries this band
past mediocre, but not that far past.
Not to mention that the range of the album is limited. The songs
have some distinction, yet the structure of the songs generally
remains the same. The songs all blend together and are almost
unrecognizable, especially because the vocals are consistent through
most of the album. This wouldn’t be a problem if there were
adequate transitions between songs (see Cut Copy’s In Ghost
Colors), but they attempt to stand on their own. The beauty of
trip/hop and electronic music in general is that you have limitless
instrumentation and vocal capabilities; it would have been nice
to hear different structures, and vocals. However, as is the case
with a lot of this genre, the songs lack a specific identity,
and, because they lack the “duuf” “duuf”
of their forefathers, they aren’t really infectious enough
to keep you interested for the entire four minutes.
Ultimately, while this album has moments of uncanny production,
it falls flat on the execution of the actual songs. The lack of
subtlety makes this album seem contrived, even though for all
intensive purposes it isn’t. (Dustin Fox)
For
fans of: Burial, Massive Attack, Portishead, Unkle
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