Just A Souvenir

With his twelfth album, Tom Jenkinson takes even a further departure from his staple Squarepuher sound of broken beats atop slapped bass and twisted triggers of the Amen Break. Warp's own store, Warpmart, categorizes the album as "Drum and Bass / Breakcore / Electronica", but I assure you, nothing could be further from the truth! (kind of misleading actually). Just A Souvenir is more in the realms of experimental rock and future jazz, with a touch of electronic treatment and a few very tasteful drills, where Jenkinson continues evolving (as a true musician should) in his experimentation with abstract accompaniment of acoustic instruments (mostly his custom built 6 string bass guitar once again) and drums that effortlessly morph between organic and digital. With Just A Souvenir, Jenkinson introduces an element of early garage rock, with vocoder and all, and reminds us once again of his amazing instrumentalist skills. First thing's first - I like it! And after only a few listens, the melodies come back haunting me later during the day. A true sign that I will return to the album! Just A Souvenir opens up with a track titled, Star Time 2 (makes you wonder about its first part) with a fun funky synth/clavichord melody and light beats. From then on Squarepusher moves into improvisational, jazzy, and effected bass slaps over barely comprehensible vocoder blurbs. All of it is truly of psychedelic nature with sparking notes in a kaleidoscope of white, red, green, blue and yellow. On his site, Jenkinson explains that "this album started as a daydream about watching a crazy, beautiful rock band play an ultra-gig." He then goes on describing his fluorescent trip which included an Eskimo on the drums and a classical guitar player that could speed up and slow down the time in his vicinity. I recommend you read up on on Tom's blurred delirium before embarking on this trip. Then bathe yourself in this album which is the interpretation of Jenkinson's memory of the daydream which he held on to as a souvenir. Running at (only) 45 minutes long, Just A Souvenir picks up where Hello Everything left off, becoming more organic with every track. If that sounds like your cup of tea, then you'll enjoy this rubber band trip through time. Only the way Squarepusher could. Just A Souvenir hits the streets on October 27th (2008), and is currently available as a digital download (in FLAC as well) from bleep dot com.

Just a Souvenir is his punk fusion record, and I'm quite certain that no one has ever sounded like this before. At points, Tom is clearly imbellishing on his bassy jazz sounds of yore (see Feed Me Weird Things and Hard Normal Daddy), but as the record progesses, we find ourselves listening to an alien sound, one that seems to combine the efforts of Einsturzende Neubauten, Kraftwerk, Miles Davis, and Dead Kennedys. The gritty production and deep textures give way to moments of immense beauty, deep and dark jazz, and some of the only electronic music that has ever been suitable for a mosh pit. I won't forget to mention the almost dangerously catchy "A Real Woman", which is a sweet mixture of British snot punk and electrobot drill n' bass. To put it plainly, Jenkinson could have done well to release this album on Mike Patton's Ipecac Label, as it would sit just as well next to a Fantomas release as it would an Autechre release. Just a Souvenir is absolutely worth a purchase to the lovers of Squarepusher and all things experimental. It's not a bad starting point for someone who wants to hear electronic music with the added flavor of live instruments, either. Well done, sir! I can't wait for the new EP due out in January!

Squarepusher's sound continues to develop with his album "Just A Souvenir", taking an experimental step into rock with many of his classic, jazzy and bass centric sounds. The instrumentation of this album, though, really sets it apart from his past releases. With a rock heavy feel to this album, of course over a DnB foundation, Squarepusher creates a unique experience for the listener. For me, this album reminds me of the common roots that so many genres share. Jazz, rock, and drill and bass come together in this album to create colorful melodies, which are complex at times and simple at others, yet, never predictable.
Although it's not a huge leap from his past material, my favorite track on the album is Aqueduct. This jazz influenced track combines electronic music concepts from the musique concrete movement with highly stylized and processed live recordings. The result is a trippy piece with clangs, acoustic guitar and bass, and synth stabs that's an easy piece to sit back and think to.
On the other end of the spectrum, some tracks such as Delta V sound straight out of the 1970s glam and punk rock genres. As a child I mainly studied jazz and blues music, so heavy rock has always been a bit hard for me to grasp and enjoy. For my taste, then, this album is bit disjointed and will probably require every listener to press the "skip" button a few times. This album definitely can't be pigeonholed into a specific genre.
One thing I have always respected about Squarepusher is his ability to create complicated melodies as well as complicated rhythms. Aqueduct is a great example of his ability to make complicated melodies that stand on their own without even a simple drumbeat. The intriguing mixture of sampled and recorded sounds that make up the melody create a dark yet beautiful texture that invites introspection. The lead track of the album, "Star Time 2", is a prime example of Squarepusher's ability to create complicated rhythms. Better yet, the fast paced, sound bending rhythm is coupled with calming guitar melodies in a funky piece that's worth listening to over and over again. Every time I listen to the piece, a new rhythmic set or melody will catch my attention, making it a new experience every time.
For people who enjoy 1970s music, this album is a great modern take on those classic themes that were strong in 1970s jazz and rock. With jazzy strummed guitars and slapped bass lines, the album reminds me a lot of John McLaughlin's work on Miles Davis' Bitches Brew album. Short choppy bass clips with both quick and slow guitar strumming mixed masterfully to create a trippy feel. More so than any other genre, the jazz work in this album seems to be a great fusion of classic style with modern technological improvements that really make it easy to create the intricate drum rhythms that should be the foundation of experimental jazz.
I'll be listening to this album on and off over the next few weeks in search of inspiration for my next pieces.

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