Frankly the only fair and just way to assess this 'super-collab' between two of clublands emerging heavyweights is in a stream-of-consciousness style rant written by your reviewer as they listen through for the first time:
We are floating. I can't even see my legs anymore. I'm having the best time. See those city lights? Yeah? And the cars all that way below us? Awesome...
Oh, some drums! That's because Alex Metric makes that rock influenced dance stuff. This is good. Actually this is formulaic. A break. Phew. Heavy. Hold on.... Tighter...
Drum roll. Woosh. Acid. Squelch. More acid.
Are we peaking? I think we might be peaking... But... This is actually a bit minimal. Hmmm... Maybe we aren't peaking. Where did the nice floaty bit from earlier go?
"Open Your Eyes". Oh, someone is saying the name of the song... Is this a radio DJ? Or was I just listening to an advert all this time? I'm feeling mildly not-okay. Like that time I took that pill and it all went 'a bit weird'.
Oh... Awesome! The floating 'no legs' bit is back but this time Alex bought his drums and there is a nice chord-progression bit! Awesome! We are DEFINITELY peaking!
This really is awesome! I think I'm having the best time! I love you guys! I really don't want anything more than this! In fact, this reminds me of that time I drank loads and loads and kissed that girl to Faithless' 'God is a DJ'. That was awesome. She was awesome. But not as awesome as you guys.
So in summary: Alex Metric & Steve Angello's 'Open Your Eyes' slots somewhere between 'epic' and 'turgid', 'brilliant' and 'annoying'. BlackPlastic says: enjoy it right now before it goes off and smells bad.
BP x
Open Your Eyes is out now on Positiva, available on Beatport.
When we reviewed James Blake's Klavierwerke EP last year one track really stood out for us - 'I Only Know (What I Know Now)' - due to it's minimal approach. The hype machine has been running at full tilt since that EP dropped and Blake's first single-proper from his self-titled debut, a cover of Feist's 'Limit To Your Love', created a bit of a watershed moment.
Fact: James Blake no longer makes dub-step. Actually BlackPlastic would argue he never really did. There are those that see the result as a commercial betrayal of the scene and there are those that see the resulting change in direction as far more innovative and exciting than what would have been possible if Blake had continued to focus on one specific genre. This album definitely puts this reviewer in the latter camp.
'I Only Know...' boasted a beautiful, raw understated approach to production and that same approach runs like a seam throughout this whole album. It is so distinctive that it almost feels like a concept.
And at times the result is truly, utterly staggering. Forthcoming single 'The Whilhelm Scream' is probably the best example. For the majority of the song's five minutes there is rarely more than a couple of things happening at any one time - a vocal runs throughout but besides that there are a smattering of clicks and beats and some soft electronic melodies, the occasional wave of distortion. But there is a point at around three-minutes in which sees the background (the clicks, whirs and distortion) become the foreground and the foreground (Blake's bruised vocal) become the background. It may sound like hyperbole but stick it on through some decent headphones or a good stereo and it is utterly staggering - worth the cost of the album on its own in fact.
And while James Blake may no longer be constrained by dub step that doesn't mean there aren't elements from that genre here. In fact, the impact of dub step on Blake's song writing and production techniques are writ large across the ambient patterns, ticks and space of all of these songs. It is quite simple: 'The Whilhelm Scream' wouldn't be possible without dub step.
The criticisms are valid insomuch that this is undoubtedly the dub step album for your mum and the auto-tuned vocals innevitably feel a little over used. Everything about Blake's album screams that this is a guy needing to expose his soul but who is afraid to do so - the songs and vocals are deliberately obscured, scuffed and distorted. It is this filter that makes them so interesting yet it is difficult to hear the acapella start to 'Lindisfarne I' without thinking about Imogen Heap and dodgy hip-hop records.
These are minor quibbles though - the 'Lindisfarne I' minimal vocal exists to provide a counterweight to 'Lindisfarne II', where the vocal is set against a jerky folk backing. As Blake sings about people flying too high it almost sounds as though the song has taken its first shaky step out of the nest.
And aside from minimalism it is contrast that this record does best. Take the tale of sibling rivalry that is 'I Never Learnt To Share', which starts with a soulful vocal - "My brother and my sister refuse to talk to me, but I don't blame them" Blake repeats (confusingly he is an only child, leaving the listener to guess at the song's true meaning). By the song's climax there is a heavy bass line and squelchy synth in the front of the mix with the whole thing having seemingly evolved from one extreme to another without you even noticing the joins.
These songs are stripped bare to the point the production would be better dubbed anti-production. The closing few tracks perhaps demonstrate this best - 'Why Don't You Call Me?' jumps around like a distorted memory with the parts all in the wrong place. It puts the idea first and lets it roll around inside your head like the memories you can't possibly leave behind. the more you think about the them the more distorted and oblique they become. Final track 'Measurements' leaves all the tricks at the door, delivering a fairly straight but layered soul number.
More than anything this is just one of those albums you need to have heard and that you need to have an opinion about. Love it or hate it you cannot deny the ambition and because of that we can't wait to see what happens next.
BP x
James Blake is out now, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP and MP3 [affiliate links].
This turned up in BlackPlastic's inbox this week with zero background and even less of an explanation. I'd encourage to just suck it up, take a listen and not worry who, what or why. It obviously sounds French, but maybe that is exactly what Video Violence want you to think.
References to robots abound and there is more than just a hint of Daft Punk and Justice in here but the eighties inspired video is a riot. Derivative it may be, but it's still pretty good.
Last week we posted our review of the rather lovely Future Disco Volume Four. If your memory is as jaded as ours we shall remind you that we said "In the age of MP3 blogs and Soundcloud mixes proper mix albums are feeling increasingly rare - each good one feels like it my be the last. You could worse than make Future Disco Four the last one you buy."
So yes, we rather liked it and would encourage you to buy it. But if buying it isn't your bag then we have just the solution for you - three proper copies to give away.
To be in with a chance of winning one please send your name and address to [competition closed] with the subject line 'I'd quite like to disco dance with you'.
The competition closes at midnight on Monday 7 February - good luck! [competition now closed - thanks to those who entered]
BlackPlastic recently saw one of those 'hot new music tips for 2011' type things that you often get in earlier January. The publication itself escapes us now and isn't really important but in a slightly back-handed compliment type fashion they mentioned Anna Calvi's 'so hot right now' status whilst simultaneously pointing out the ubiquity of female singer-songwriter's in these lists every year these days.
Which feels like an odd thing to do. It sounds a bit like men can be considered musically important all year round but because a few ladies get a look in for a month something mental must be going on. It can't just be because women might actually be good at making music.
Digression aside, how does Anna Calvi actually stack-up? Pretty well in places actually. Let's dispense with the obvious - Anna Calvi sounds a good deal like PJ Harvey. And BlackPlastic aren't the first people to say so. But more importantly at times Anna Calvi also sounds excellent.
Starting with an instrumental in 'Rider To The Sea' it feels as though Anna Calvi is deliberately challenging the listener so only the patient get rewarded. Stick around and it pays off - 'No More Words' is cloying and desperate like being lost inside a dream with someone you can't get out of your head. It's swagger and bravado yet vulnerable at the same time.
'Desire' is exactly the opposite. It reeks of self-assurance - the chorus a triumphant cry of the song's title that sounds like Calvi telling you to take her or leave her. The result is rallying and triumphant. 'I'll Be Your Man' somewhere between the two - at times warped and strung-out yet bound together with a chorus that refuses to be quiet.
BlackPlastic can't help but find the quieter Anna Calvi more intriguing. On 'Morning Light' there are times when Calvi's vocals barely break through the surface tension and the whole thing is very reminiscent of David Lynch's Twin Peaks, sparse and taught and dreamlike. Which is a good thing.
Drenched in bluesy folk vibes and doused in praise Anna Calvi may be but this debut album feels, unsurprisingly, like just that - a debut. There are some great moments here but on the whole it feels like a rather brilliant tribute to other people's ideas rather than an achievement in itself. It just might be the follow-up that really pays off.
BP x
Anna Calvi is out now on Domino, available at Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP and MP3 [affiliate links].
