Daedelus

Exquisite Corpse

(Mush Records, 2005)

On the second album baring his moniker, Daedelus dishes out only five tracks without the assistance of a guest.  But those five tracks of the producer all alone are easily entertaining enough to warrant purchasing this album.  Anyway, from the release of “The Weather” LP and “Of Snowdonia” Daedelus has shown his considerable talents repeatedly.  Here he continues.  It’s just not as consistent.  The first of only five solo tracks we are lucky enough to hear is easily one of the most pleasurable on the album.  “Dearly Departed”, while the music is close to awe inspiring, sports a somewhat sub-par female vocal sample.  The second of the solo tracks most clearly states why Daedelus is worth listening to.  Every aspect of this song is how Daedelus seems to define himself:  from the electro-glitch production to the eastern theme, which so commonly ends up benefiting with its’ pairing with hip-hop.  The remaining solo efforts aren’t bad but can’t really maintain my interest.  The six-minute “The Crippled Hand” is an example of the producer becoming a bit too self-absorbed. Aside from the instrumentals, there are almost too many guests to get through.  MF Doom shows up early on a track perfectly suited to his style although a bit short.  In his allotted time he’s able to get off the line “He don’t eat gelatin/hot or cold ham”.  What?  Prefuse 73 makes an appearance as well as Cyne, who has been showing up on a number of compilations similar to this one.  On “Welcome Home”, Mike Ladd turns in another track, consistent with his solo work; moderately interesting.  An acoustic guitar on “Thanatopis” closes the album.  Our guest on this one, Hrishikesh Hirway, helps Daedelus close out what ended up almost being an average affair with a chocolate magic shell coating.

Dinji Brown

Uncle Junior's Friday Fish Fry

(Uncle Junior Records, 2003)

The conveyance of feeling during an evening at a get together assumes shape on this slab by Dinji Brown in cooperation with Seven Heads and Uncle Junior Records.  The tracks are supposed to emulate the progression of a parties’ sound track during the seventies.  The record incorporates innumerous styles and genres.  Djinji Brown mixes it altogether, only rarely distracting you with clumsy, although difficult, segues between tracks as well as musical genres.  Represented on this disc are pretty much every variety of black music from the seventies, it spans the globe.  We get to hear some Fela Kuti in there for god sake.  “Sit tight and listen keenly,” we will all hear something that we have not heard before.  More regularly the something new ends up being pleasing, but toward the middle of the album the sound shifts to more dance oriented styles.  The importance of the record spinner is chronicled here amidst that ever-present groove.  In the seventies, when presumably Djinji Brown and his cohorts at Seven Heads were growing up, the record selector simply played these sounds on one solitary turntable for his/her friends.  Today there are entire records, like this one that are based upon selection and transition.