eMusic Review 0
It's hard to imagine a greater left curve than Jamie Lidell's fantastic second album, Multiply. His first solo album, Muddlin Gear, had been a disorienting spray of rapid-fire beats and digitally abraded samples, so frenetic it made his labelmate Squarepusher sound sluggish in comparison. His live shows, likewise — both on his own and in the duo Super Collider, with Cristian Vogel — were incendiary affairs where the artist resampled his own shrieks and beatboxing into shuddering maelstroms that were part industrial techno, part apocalyptic R&B.
But Lidell's dirty little secret was always that he actually had a fantastic, versatile voice, as well as a deep appreciation for classic American soul of the Stax and Motown varieties. Multiply emphasizes both points across a set that makes explicit reference to everything from Stevie Wonder ("What's the Use") to Otis Redding ("Multiply," which adapts its melody from "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay"). Working with a cast of collaborators including Gonzales, Snax, Taylor Savvy and Mocky, who co-produced half the album, the record breaks almost completely with Muddlin Gear's digital foundations, availing itself of electric piano, drums, standup bass and even horns. These are proper songs, cleverly… read more »
