Tom Jenkinson, aka Squarepusher, has never taken the easy route, in either his output or his sense of risk taking and collaboration, with projects such as his brilliant Shobaleader One with a crack team of jazz musicians, and his project with Japanese robots – Squarepusher x Z-Machines, showing why he’s been pushing boxes for getting on for a quarter of a century.
Following on from his recent Be Up a Hello album, Jenkinson has followed it with this new EP, Lamental. It opens up with The Paris Track, which after a smooth start kicks into an warm slice of electro-funk with a sizzling, jittering bassline. Similarly the short Les Mains Dansent has this renaissance feel about it as Jenkinson brings his bass playing chops to the fore.
The EP finishes with two versions of Midi Sans Frontieres, both of them serene and beautiful, the difference being that the Avec Batterie version has this driving, sprawling beats alongside it.
Nearing his quarter century, Jenkinson and Squarepusher are still more than relevant and more than capable of writing music that is interesting, lovable and more than dance floor ready. Keep pushing those boxes.
Lamental EP is out via Warp Records on April 10th.
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