dj signify - sleep no more
weird one this. a scary hip hop horror soundtrack (to a movie yet to made of course .) released on lex home of happy party groove hip hop danger mouse/jemini, tes and hymies basement. this album adds to the growing fact that lex are fast becoming one of the most interesting labels in the uk right now.
best listened to on a stormy late night, the errie sounds will be quickly raising the chill factor all the way to ten. and that aint coffee bar sanctioned chill factor. oh no. this is a clive barker/david lynch type of chill, as indicated by the downright unpleasant dark coverart.
has there ever been a hip hop album so grimly packaged?
the added bonus though is that dj signify has created a story arc across the album with many of the tracks featuring 2 of hip hops current storyteller super stars - sage francis and buck 65.
a perfect matching.
stories of nastiness and strange goings on infiltrate the static/scratchy samples and downtempo beats, whether they are all connected i have yet to be able to make out, but i suspect that they are. the vocals feature details on various far away characters inhabiting lost worlds in the outer regions of americas sanity ("the whole town will probably drown one day"), populating those hours where it is neither daylight, nor night time. despite really enjoying this album, its very nature and atmospheres make this only suitable when in the right mood, not a party soundtrack thats for sure. but when the story and mood is as beautifully painted as 'winters going' then you needn't be scared - dj shadow meets john carpenter - the slow-n-low groove and buck 65 words just fill your space with mental imagary that lodge and permeate your dreams, if you're unlucky. one has to remind oneself that despite the dourness of this it is still a hip hop album. its on a hip hop label. but damn this is one of the most unusual hip hop albums i have in my collection.
but surely that is a good thing. i think.