Customer Reviews

Adventures in Foam

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just recently bought my copy of Adventures in Foam after finding out Cujo is actually Amon Tobin. I've been a longtime fan of the three albums AT put out under his own name and was reeling when I find out about this little beauty. I must say that I am glad to have cut my teeth on Amon's releases before listening to Cujo. I appreciate the stylistic growth from Bricolage to Supermodified. Adventures In Foam is Tobin's more playful electronic persona (evidenced by the silly album cover art.) From the free form opening to the slinky 'Cat People' through a dissonant closing following 'Cruzer,' this album is all about desterilizing D'n'B. I think this release has a slightly more forboding feel than Permutation and Supermodified, and perhaps even Bricolage. Favorite moment of the album is the first 20-odd seconds of 'Cruzer,' a stunning piano trill sample (that reminds me of strolling melancholy through NYC city streets at 4am) that falls into a bumping drum and bass break with odd samples dispersed throughout. I think Amon Tobin can do no wrong and as it turns out, his earliest effort is on both feet, skipping to a sound all his own.

My first exposure to drum n' bass came in 1995 and 96 by way of Goldie, 4hero, and LTJ Bukem. I was immediately into the sound, something about the complexity of the breaks, the dubby basslines, and the otherworldly atmosphere...it was to me...the revolution. The music was great, however, I was unaware of it's capabilities until a friend in college who I traded music with stumbled across the Cujo album and introduced it to me in 1997. My world had changed. I had never heard anything this intricate, I thought Miles and Hancock were the last to know how deep music could go. It gave me a new hope for my generation. A few months later I brought Bricolage and the love affair grew into an obsession. I remember riding the subway playing it so loud in my headphones that a guy stopped me and asked me what I was listening to, it sounded so interesting to him. After the release of Permutation, other people seemed to become aware of Amon Tobin and his greatness, even more so after Supermodified. All of a sudden I knew several people who were dedicated fans. I started to become jealous, halfway happy that Amon Tobin was gaining the respect he deserved, but jealous that his music was being molested by untrained ears. I wished for the days when I would play it and feel like I was one of the few in New York who had it, it was just me and Amon Tobin...and the most incredible music I'd ever heard.

This Ninjatune re-release is very much better than the 1996 release on SHADOW records (the US release) which is still available.

The first CD of this re-release is similar to the 1996 release on the now defunct UK label Ninebar that has other tracks than the Shadow version. But this re-release even includes a bonus CD that is definitely worthwhile!

The music differs some from the latter work of Amon Tobin under his own name, but most people that like Bricolage, Permutations or Supermodified would also enjoy this jazzy gem.

Incredible re-release of the debut release from Amon Tobin. Features many rare tracks previously only found on the NineBar vinyl EPs, out of print for years. From the incredible abstract 'Traffic' to the rare swingin' gem 'Popsicle', a must own for any true fan.

From absolutlely mind searing jungle(Traffic), to down tempo hip hop groove (Cat People), to Miles Davis, ala Bitches Brew (Northstar), Amon Tobin creates one of the most eclectic jungle albums to date under the moniker of CUJO.

departing from his usual style of drum n bass and jungle, Amon Tobin flaps his avant-garde wings, still keeping some of his usual elements (the jazz, swing influence), this one shows he is just as experimental as squarepusher and photek, even delving into the just plain weird.

this one is not for the uninitiated or the narrow of musical scope.

I swear Amon Tobin...Cujo...or whatever his name is, is not of this world! After getting "Adventures in Foam" and listening to the whole thing non-stop (I usually skip through a CD if it's garbage!), I realized that these songs couldn't've be produced by any human being. I say that in jest, of course, but Cujo-Tobin has taken a dying genre (that being D&B, jungle or whatever it's called) and turned it into something a helluva lot more interesting and tolerable to the ear. Cujo still utilizes his trademark jazz samples, sporadic drum tracks and other foreign oddities from God knows where, only on "Adventures in Foam" his beats are more steady and less jittery than those heard on his other releases. Definitely a good thing being that he's performing under a nom de guerre for the Shadow record label. "Adventures in Foam" displays a more playful side of Tobin, than the dark, eerie, ominous tones of his other brilliant works. It truly shows that even as Cujo he has what it takes to deliver some damn good music. If you aren't impressed with Tobin's other stuff (shame on you!!), you'll definitely love "Adventures in Foam", if only for the extraordinary production value.

Before Amon Adonai Santos de Aravjo Tobin shortened his name to simply Amon Tobin, he released his debut album under Cujo alias (indeed borrowed from a Stephen King novel), on a small south London label, Ninebar Records. Soon after, Ninja Tune noticed the Brazilian born artist, and signed him in 1997 for his critically acclaimed Bricolage. The rest, as we say, is history. Covering Tobin's bio and discography is a lengthy task, so I'll leave the research up to you [and shame on you if don't know the artist already]. In 2002, Adventures In Foam was re-released on Ninja Tune, this time as a double CD, containing previously unreleased material. Here's a statement from the label: "[The] fact remains that "Adventures In Foam" was a really good record, one that deserved to be heard, so when Ninja were offered an opportunity to re-release it, they jumped at the chance. Not least, because a rather unscrupulous company in the States have been circulating a version of the record with a changed tracklist, different (and unapproved) cover art and mis-titled tracks". So this should settle it once and for all. If you first fell in love with Amon Tobin after hearing his Bricolage, full of jazz infused, Latin influenced downtempo and drum'n'bass breaks and broken beats, then you'll definitely enjoy another round of Tobin's signature sampling techniques. You'll even smile after recognizing familiar sounds and beats, later reused in his subsequent albums. Definitely still enjoyable after all these years, as a first or repeated listen. A must for collectors. Artist cloud includes DJ Food, Funki Porcini, Bonobo, Wagon Christ and The Herbaliser. Favorite unreleased track: The Brazilianaire.

Cuado compré este Cd, no sabia que CUJO, era otro de los alter egos de Amon Tobin. Lo desucbri cuando recibi el CD y ahi decia, produced and writed by Amon Tobin.

Lejos de alegrarme esa situacion, comence a esucharlo, y lo que a primera vista parecia un Drum & Bass normal, poco a poco comenzo a transformarce en una increible mezcla de Acid Jazz, con sonidos electricos y freneticos generando magnificas atmósferas.
Este disco es de 1997, pero sus sonidos son tan actules y atemporales que lo colocan a la par con los ultimos trabajos del mismo artista (amon tobin por estos dias).

Dos Pistas de este CD son las que me cautivaron por sobremanera, y que podrian escuchar, al primera es "3. The Light", con sonidos downtempo, samples voacales y loops repetitivos al mas puro estilo breakbeats, la segunda es "4. Cat People" igual casi downtempo mas frenetica y rápida que la anterior ambas crean una dupla bellisima.

Los sonidos de este disco son excellentes y sus mezclas soberbias, por eso tengo que dejar en calaro que CUJO, es sin dudarlo el mejor lado de AMON TOBIN.

(escribe en tu lengua, las palabras se derriten en tu boca)

The first track is just too damned sweet! Not as consistent as Tobin's later two albums, this is album still contains 4-5 pure absolute gems. The sound is more stripped-bare, more minimalist (maybe he had cheaper equipment?) than the next two albums (some people may dig this, although I prefer a myriad of junk layered on top of the drums), and the non-drum elements are more repetitive.

i picked up this album after i'd had bricolage and permutation for a year or so. some of it works and some of it doesn't; tobin's gimmickery is more prominent here than in his later works, and it gets in the way of his music-making. but tobin's mature tricks are what make his newer tunes so fantastic, and foam's a great place from which to watch the growth of his powers. still, this is pretty solid stuff - "fat ass joint" is a sly, wicked tune, and there are other standouts - it's just not so chewy and flavorful as his recent efforts. especially Supermodified. oh man..