Hello Everything

Squarepusher | Format: MP3 Download

Product Details

• Original Release Date: October 16, 2006
• Label: Warp Records
• Copyright: 2006 Warp Records Limited
• Total Length: 1:03:41
• Genres: Dance & DJ/Electronica
• ASIN: B001DXHDM6
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,309 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hello Squarepusher, October 17, 2006

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hello Everything (Audio CD)

For just about every artist who has a signature style, and makes more than a few albums, a bit of repetition is inevitable. Sooner or later, they will return to familiar territory. That's the case in Squarepusher's latest, "Hello Everything," which sounds a lot like his earlier work from the late 1990s.

But surprisingly, it doesn't feel like he's been here before. Instead it feels like a nostalgic mishmash of sampling and bass, but with an exuberant feeling that wasn't there in his previous few albums. This is Tom Jenkinson in a fun mood, settling back into familiar beats.

It opens with the slightly wobbly, energetic beats of "Hello Meow," and meanders down a string of more upbeat melodies, using all sorts of weird samples and beats -- the sounds of buzzes, bubbles, sharp drum machines and woozy jazzy downtempo, all sounding very catchy in an offbeat way.

Things change dramatically in the middle -- there are a pair of unabashedly spacey songs, which sound a lot like the background music for a sci-fi film. Then Squarepusher reluctantly switches to a more grounded sound, with swooshy synth, sharp beats, and fast-paced electronic soundscapes, before endin with the weirdly soothing ten-minute "Orient Orange."

Anyone expecting "Hello Everything" to build on the sound of "Ultravisitor" is going to be VERY disappointed -- only one song on here, "The Modern Bass Guitar," sounds even vaguely like it. Instead, the music sounds much more like his earlier work like "Music is Rotted One Note" and "Selection Sixteen."

It may not be a new sound, but it fits Squarepusher like a comfortable old sweater. He seems to be dabbling in various styles that he enjoys, just because he enjoys them. "Hello Everything" shoots from from sleepy downtempo to ambient to razor-edged techno, and it fits together like a slightly disjointed, but colourful puzzle.

In fact, it's actually kind of fun -- it sounds lighthearted in some of the early tracks, although he noodles a bit too much in the middle. Songs like the effervescent, fizzing "Bubble Life" make a sharp contrast to the rat-a-tat of "Planetarium," but Squarepusher wrings complex melodies out of the simplest samples and rhythms, wrapping them in layer of colourful sound.

Squarepusher backslides in a good way in "Hello Everything," revisiting his older sounds with enjoyable results. It's not exactly new, but it's certainly enjoyable.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars about the mastering..., January 3, 2007

By 

Aaron Zamarron "aarontz" (Dearborn, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hello Everything (Audio CD)

I just wanted to say that the idea of this record sounding "unmastered" to people is an unjust accusation. I believe Squarepusher is just consciously utilizing the full dynamic range of his music---the tracks are NOT unpolished and unmixed, but rather crescendoing, decrescendoing, etc. much like that of classical music.

This was also the case in Ultravisitor and perhaps others I haven't heard yet. I'll bet it just seems unmastered to a lot of people because there's hardly any electronic music like this where songs would go from a pianissimo to a triple forte and other such dynamic ranges. In lots of electronic music (excluding early academic stuff), especially ones with club-oriented roots, things stay at about the same volume level, or at least you never have to strain to hear the music.

So as a result, because of the range of volumes on this disc, it pretty much restricts you to a marginal volume setting. Otherwise some parts would be barely audible or others might be way too loud. Therefore, using this as background music is pretty much not an option. I can't play it in the car with my girlfriend because she gets frustrated that she can't talk to me during the loud parts. But then again when did anyone ever expect Squarepusher to function as background music? He always demands our full attention!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great album, but bonus cd is questionable., October 18, 2006

By 

Huntsman (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hello Everything (Bonus CD) (Audio CD)

I love Squarepusher, and I've been anticipating this release for some time now. The good news is this is a great Squarepusher album. He seems to be back in late 90s form for the majority of the album. Several of the songs remind me of songs from Hard Normal Daddy, based more around jazz and early 90s techno than some of the later releases. Chances are that if your interested in Squarepusher already, you'll like this album.

The bonus cd was a disappointment for me. It's a 3 inch cd, with tracks Melt 1, Melt 3, Melt 4, Melt 5 and Melt 6. These appear to be variations of the song Vacuum Garden from the main disc. Normally I'm all for remixes, but these tracks bored me. The original is very spacy, with a slow build over the course of the song that never really goes anywhere. On the album it serves as a transition and doesn't feel out of place. On the bonue disc, however, this slow build only leads into another slow build with the slightest of variations. Maybe the differences would stand out a little more with repeated listens, but I don't foresee a time that I'll have the desire to play that disc again.

Unless you're a completist that just has to own the bonus disc, I'd advise to skip the limited edition and go for the standard version.