(feat. school of seven bells)
feels like ages since prefuse 73, aka guillermo scott herren, graced his presence in the to review pile. especially as in 2005, he was releasing records virtually every week and collaborating with anyone with a spare hour to fill.
this comeback single is the first release from his forthcoming album, preparations, and as to be expected, expect the unexpected. a well trodden cliché perhaps, but one that stands loud and proud with the ongoing experimental nature of prefuse 73 music.
for the lead track, the beat is pure straight up modern multi-layered hip hop laced with cut up samples, orchestrations (of which make for a dominating factor on the accompanying album according to the details provided), with vocal overdubs by various folks from the school of seven bells giving the result a kind of twisted urban take on the mediaeval baebes vibe.
strange, but ever so bewitching.
smoking red (featuring john stanier) is a mess of clatter funk beats, processed vocal cut ups, and the usual crash course in sample overload under which are the makings of melody and structure. then for en blanco the beat is as straight forward as a dj shadow classic, low slung, and funky as hell, the mess of digital noise that surrounds the addictive loop would have made the bomb squad production crew proud back in ’88 and naturally sounds vital in 2007.
an excellent way to build up peoples expectations for the forthcoming album, that’s for certain.
more detail : warp records – – myspace