File Under Futurism

grate beats

Its very rare when someone actually concocts enjoyable experimental music. Generally, academia over takes the album, which in turn only makes the album listenable to the hardcore devoted or the most elite of listeners. What I love about File Under Futurism is that actually maintains a balance between sound exerimentation and straightforward music. To me, the results are quite stunning.Starting off with fast-paced complex title track, the song is a wrap up of drum n' bass breaks, hyper-speed bass playing, cello-driven melody and various other turntablist noise. The results are quite exciting, since it really inspires a sound not heard. From there, the album becomes a playground for all sorts of weird experimentation from downtempo trip-hop, hardcore drill n' bass, post rock workouts, and various sound collages(the track The RCA Mark II Synthesizer was apparently recorded on the first synthesizer ever made). Despite all the genre-hoping, a definitive sound remains creating a cohesive project. Its involving, intoxicating, and otherworldly brilliant. It strikes the perfect balance between listenability and wild experimentation. An essential album for fans of the genre and anyone looking for a forward looking band.

This is the kind of music that the replicas from Blade Runner would have made had they been classical musicians...Excellent, dark, brutal and the perfect album for any alienated day in the year 2000 and beyond. If you like Aphex Twin, check this out...It blips and whirrs like Mr. James, but where he wants to tap at your cranium, Spooky bashes your head into the wall...and I mean that in a good way...Yet, for all of its roughness, the word beautiful cannot help but come to mind when listening to this...Especially tracks like "This is What Happens" and "The Revolution Will Be Streamed." They actually explode in such a way as to lift the listener out of the depths created by tracks like "Downtempo Manifesto" (which lives up to its name) and "Chromatic Aberration." If you like experimental music, or are interested in the sonic equivilance Post-Modern Philosophy, please, please, do yourself a favor and buy this disk.

I think AP said it best when speaking of this disc. It sounds more like a battle than a colaboration. The two forces seem to be trying to outduel the other and it can become quit distracting at times, but, on a overall tip, File Under Futurism is a wonderful example of what live musicians and technology can create. The beats are top notch for Spooky and he continues to push the limits of what can be defined as music. As for the FEQ, their contributions have proven to me that they are a force to reckoned with. Hell, they even wrote like 3 or 4 songs on this album. The live stuff and track 3 are my personal favorites and I recommend this to anyone looking for a serious sonic assault of calcualted madness.

This CD was a huge disappointment to me. I bought the CD on the recommendation of a close friend. The CD opens up with one of the best tracks on the CD, with a nice bouncey bass line and very nice samples and layering. You might even notice the reference to an old-school drum n bass track, <aka: jungle>, "Night Of The Living Dead", which is on Speed Limit 140+ BPMs.Then the album degenerates into a mish mosh of ambience and noise with beats that flitter this way and that. After repeated listens, I was able to dig up 2 more tracks that were acceptable. They didn't blow me away and this CD remains basically an EP to me. A CD with 3 tracks and filler.Only the true abstract fan can enjoy this, because there's very little to grasp on to when listening.

This is not an album for the feint of heart, or for people who aren't the least bit interested in "art-music". Buy "Riddim Warfare", buy something else...On the other hand, for what this album does, it is amazing. You take an art-minded DJ in Spooky and mix them with a pretty progressive group that is into art-music and electronic stuff. And you end up with a genre bending brilliance, that eventually becomes enmired in your soul. What does a cello have to do with a turntable? What does orange juice have to do with vodka? In time, they just work.If you're into combining turntablism with 'art-music' (sorry for the term!!!) this is an essential album. If you're just into rap, run away.... fast...!

The CD starts out unobtrusively with some cello notes, some turntable noise, some vocal samples of "check 1 2... subliminal production... file... futurism..." and *KA-BOOM*! Welcome to the twisted and intriguing world of DJ Spooky and The Freight Elevator Quartet. This was my first Spooky CD ever, and while it isn't as good as the very very brilliant "Songs of a Dead Dreamer", it's still a fascinating listen. Prior to the purchase, I had no clue who either Spooky or the Quartet were, and bought the album based on the cover artwork (see, art direction DOES matter). The album is fantastic on many levels, being very experimental and still keeping some degree of accessibility. The tracks range in style, which what makes the album so interesting - drum + bass, abstract/noise/ambient, down tempo, illbient, experimental... the only downside to the disc is that many of the same samples are used over and over, and by "Infrared" you're pretty sick of hearing those five cello notes looped over and over. But luckily "This Is What Happens" and "Variation On a Freight Theme" shatter the numbing sameness - both live tracks, both preformed by the Quartet, and both hauntingly beautiful. This is chaotic, atmospheric, apocalyptic dance music for the 22nd century. While it's not exactly rave music, it's the type of music that brings to mind scenes of ecstasy-riddled psy-trancers beating each other with glowsticks. Listen if you dare.

This is densely packed enough to provide some pleasantly experimental electro excursions, but make no mistake- this is essentially glorified drill-n-bass with a few artsy elements and plenty of distorted sound thrown in to compensate for its normalcy.