Customer Reviews

Music Is Rotted One Note

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Tom Jenkinson (AKA Squarepusher) is that rare bird in Electronica: a performing musician of great talent as well as a wizard with the machinery. His earlier albums and singles have bounced between ultra-high-speed Drum 'n' Bass and Jazz Fusion in the manner of '70s Weather Report--along with some Aphex-Twinnish electronic noodling. His drum-machine programming has always had a "natural" quality (though often at superhuman beats per minute). With this album we hear why: Jenkinson is a jazz drummer of the first order. We've already heard his awe-inspiring fretless basswork on earlier albums, and it, too, is heard in abundance. But what we don't hear is the intricate sequencing of earlier albums; instead, Tom uses drumsticks, not drum machines. Through the wonders of multitrack, he layers his bass (sometimes several deep) and keyboards over those drums. Then he processes the result, sometimes heavily, bending acoustic space and time. The result is highly reminiscent of Miles Davis' more experimental works of the '70s. Punctuating the album are brief bursts of pure tape-based analog electronica, but it all works seamlessly.

Many fans of earlier Squarepusher albums will be turned off by this one. Even fans of his earlier Jazz Fusion tracks might find this far too experimental. And fans of experimental Jazz might resent the audacity of his explorations into their territory. But those who are able to put aside their preconceived notions might find this album to be an amazing work of genius from an artist who (at 23) is just starting what could be a very long and interesting journey.

Squarepusher's old style is great. His break beat play is incredibly entertaining and his song writing skill is up there also. But this is crazy. I was not expecting this. It is wonderful! Angry, ambient, drugged-up jazz. Upon first listen to have to wonder what he was doing. It sounds like a drunk monkey on crank played a sizable portion of the album (this being a good thing). The drum rolls, the bass play, the processing. Everything gives this album a unique-as-hell fell.

In my opinion it is his greatest accomplishment. A masterpiece. I agree with a review below. I can't believe some people don't get it. It is really a shame. If you like mainstream anything you will not like this album. If you like intelligent, deeply experimental music pick this up NOW.

Best Tracks: Chunk-S, Don't Go Plastic, Rinse(137), Shin Triad

Squarepusher revisits Miles' most controversial album "On the Corner" in Music is Rotted One Note. At one time bands would not touch that album, now everyone wants to say they were influenced by it. However, Music is Rotted One Note uses Miles music as a sketchpad for something even darker and disturbing. Unlike Miles this is not a continuous jam. Some tracks are in the vein of dark ambient and one track even sounds like Morton Subotnick. Despite the variety, the album is cohesive. Each track feeds into the next. Though Squarepusher is known for drill 'n' bass, this to me is his best album because it takes Miles' music to new hights that it could have reached.

OK, so it's jazz. I had read that this was a jazz record, but I insisted to myself that it was the usual Squarepusher jungle mixed with a little psuedo jazziness tossed in to differentiate it from all the generic electronic stuff being cranked out these days.

Boyo, I was mistaken! This is absolutely jazz; almost entirely free-form abstract jams that leave you disoriented. Just try to hum one of these tracks! With the exception of "My Sound," there is nothing here that sustains an easily recognized structure for more than a minute or two.

Is it good jazz? 'Ell-if-I-no. I don't own any 'real' jazz albums, until now, so I can't critique it intelligently. I do know that I'm drawn to what Tom's done here, and that I like the fact that it forces me to pay attention to what's going on. As background music, this is a stinker. As a potential commercial hit, I'd give it a negative 5 on a 1 to 10 scale.

It's already driven my wife and mother in law out of the room howling, so that's one star for it! I'll give it another for being such a departure from previous Squarepusher albums, another for being made up of actual instruments (there are some minimal electronic flourishes, but they're not the meat here), and two more because I'm really a Squarepusher fan. Take one away for me not knowing good jazz from my left nut, and you've got a surprising, challenging, engaging, and bizarre 4-star album.

This is an album for all those jazz drum lovers that are
a bit out there. Warp egomaniacs are invited too.
Always pushing you further.
It's Warp , what can you say.
But kinda different - this is T.Jenkinksons'
experimental abstract jazz.
Or maybe - post drumnbass low noise speed freaky jazz?!?!

Squarepusher's brain efforts show
huge subtle programming skills combined with
excellent knowledge and mastery of live instruments.
Remember - Squarepusher /TJ/ is a playing musician as well.

The album is dark, mysterious, witty and challenging.
It requires repetitive listening approach.
Remember - 'Rotted' is not an easy one to listen to.
Attacking you with radical, intelligent noise,
complex bass lines, brain-bugging drum patterns
and broken loose beats ... plus some wacked low screaming keyboards.
It's a bit haunting and scary.

One must say the album is complicated but doesn't
leave you ... errm exactly... with the taste of diversity.

It's plain messing with your brain.

Favourite tracks: Favourite? You've got to be kidding.
And yet - don't go plastic and my sound at least resemble
a normal track.

One can hardly consider it pure music , but it's some
definite brain effort you have to know.

4+1/2 stars to this as it's not really something
to love, but is important.

Squarepusher (like his contemporary "Aphex Twin") is an artist, that isn't explicitly tied to one musical genre. Stretching across a multitude of genres in the electronic field, his albums can touch upon: Experimental, Jungle, IDM, Ambient, Drill'n'Bass, Electronica. And all the more surprising is the fact, of exactly how proficient he can be when he turns his attention, to a chosen field. Although, something frequently referenced by Squarepusher in his music, which pushes him within the best in his field, amongst his contemporaries, is his love of 'Jazz' music, and the way that various tracks throughout his career make certain references to it, unquestionably noticeable in some of his tracks.

With "Music is Rotten One Note", Squarepusher has gone one step further than merely having an album, that has a couple of tracks that reference Jazz in some way, and instead has created an album that, is (in part) in tribute to the Jazz artists that have influenced him. (in particular "Miles Davis"), and crafted an album of delicate instrumental arrangements, and the cerebral and complex structure of Jazz-Fusion and Progressive Jazz, coupled with Freewheeling and occasionally reflective electronic compositions.

The mood is one that isn't reliant on frenetic breaks or abrasive beats as such, and instead is more informed by hypnotic grooves, minimal instrumentation, and reflective keyboards, and possibly some of the most soothing and intimate sampling, that Squarepusher has committed to record. There are still the warped flourishes of sound and Avant-garde approach to experimentation that squarepusher is known for, but here it for more subdued and considered and veers more towards a spookily articulate and spiralling composition, that works wonderfully against the slow moving and shimmering melodies and shows that squarepusher is arguably as brilliantly creative taking things slower musically, as he is delivering breakneck rhythms. But its his re-evaluation what jazz instruments could be, that is what impresses most here, obviously a committed Jazz fan, everything feels like its Strangely influenced by Miles Davis to some degree. Almost as if merely taking the progressive sound of Miles continuingly evolving music, and bringing it firmly up to date, or indeed reinterpreting it as Miles may have, had he still been around today. 'Music is Rotten one Notes', best moments come from examining the potentially limitless stream of ideas that taking Jazz, and imbuing it with a heavily textured musical framework seems to offer. Fender Rhodes piano, and subtle electronic arrangements flesh the music out beautifully, give the music the sparing ethereal groove of Jazz, coupled with the mellow brooding of the electronics, makes for an almost low-key electronic-Jazz Soundtrack, of the highest order.

Anyone entering into this album, hoping for the Electronic breakbeat brilliance of say: "Hard Normal Daddy" or "Feed Me Weird Things" would do well to look elsewhere, as you'll be disappointed. It's a far too subtle, Poignant and broadly sketched piece of work, to intice those looking for something more energetic. But if you approach the album from the required perspective (I.e. one of a generally slow moving electronically enhanced Jazz album), you'll gradually come to truly love this album. Granted it's not an immediate album....think more something that you'll grow into, and probably work at its best, when reflecting certain moods. Sure, there'll be those (Like me), that also listen to a fair bit of Jazz (in it's many, many forms)...and are pretty much be able to dive straight in. And I'll make no secret that this is proably amongst my 2 favourite Squarepusher albums (next to the seminal "Hard Normal Daddy"), but provided the idea of a Squarepusher devised 'Jazz' album doesn't fill you with horror, and you are prepared to give this one a try. (and considering you like the experimentation of Squarepusher...why shouldn't you), You just might (Just might) like me...come to the conclusion that this is possibly one of Squarepusher's most criminally underratted albums, and deserves to be regarded in the similar acclaim, as Squarepusher's finest work.

I am truly speechless over this album. It is true that Jenkinson's style changes slightly from album to album, but this is quite a jump. Gone are the highly articulate drums and melodies that were held together by a complex array of electronics. Also gone are the club friendly aspects that made Jenkinson an artist to be dealt with in the dance scene. Replacing all of those is what seems to be a pure jazz album recorded on analogue.

Although jazz does not usually fit in with what I listen to on a normal basis, this album does remind me of some other jazz artists that find themselves a place in my cd player on regular occasions. This album is what would happen if Miles Davis decided to make a dance album. Instead it is dance guru Jenkinson that decided to make a jazz album.

The entire album is comprised of live drums, not drum machines. Also included are synths and basses and guitars that are seemingly played directly to analogue. There doesn't seem to be a hint of electronic or computer manipulation anywhere on this album. Yet, even with it being a complete and almost perfect jazz album, it still has the feeling that makes you want to go clubbing to it.

If you are a huge fan of Squarepusher other works, you might want to check out a few samples of this album before actually making the purchase. However, if you are a fan of acid and progressive jazz music and hail Miles Davis as a god, go ahead and buy this album...you will love it much much more than the ravers of generation x.

Jenkinson seems to be finding new styles and techniques all the time. He is always cooking something up that astounds listners and makes them wonder. he is breaking new ground when it comes to his senseless, yet amazing azid jazz. this album does not get boring, for each new time you listen to it you discover new things that you didn't relize before. this is not another attempt at his usual funky breakbeat science, but a trip into a neverending ex jazz. I suggest that you in some way sample this album before you buy it, it is very very different from his ealier projects. If your into azid jazz or enjoy listening to a variety of experimental artists than this is definitly the album for you. Don't be surprised at first if the album seems dry and pointless , listen to it over and over, give up some time to sit back and take in what is truly an amazing experience. Keep it real Tom.

This album picks up where Herbie Hancock rather sadly left off through dwindling interest in the seventies before turning his tremendous talents to more basic funk. It has a lot in common with Sextant and Crossings as well as Headhunters and others from that period. Chuck in some emulations of Mahavishnu Style Wailing, Stanley Clarke/Jaco Pastorius as well as Electric Miles period stuff and you have a great fusion album brought right up to date with 90s beats and technology. Whilst the playing cannot match the aforementioned greats, there is much to be admired here. The drumming (which sounds like real drums) is first class and the level of invention in the composition is very high, better than in the original 70s material where lightening fast playing was considered more important than nice tunes and clever changes. Its really great to hear somebody playing something that sounds like a fender-rhodes again. Gimme more, much more. Highly recommended.

I've listened to this for six months now. What is this? Is this perverted music, or music perverted. Is it a joke? A satire? Musical masturbation? Miles Davis, if he was still alive, old, and addicted to heroin? Muzak for schizophrenics? I don't know. Probably none of the above. My mom liked a couple of the tracks, but on others thought there was something wrong with my car CD player. It took me a year to really start to "get" Hard Normal Daddy, his previous full album. Will really annoy you friends, and/or neighbors. Or to be safe, you could just listen to the Dave Matthews Band. At least buy his album to look cool and eclectic in your CD collection, so his next record will also be released by in the U.S. (Trent Reznor is really cool or just plain suicidal for releasing this record, or both)