Review
"cyberCHUMP is one of the most intriguing, unpredictable, enjoyable recording acts in ambient music. Deliciously subversive" --Bill Binkelman, Wind and Wire, April, 2005
Product Description
The CD kicks off with the subtly scratchy sublime floating caresses and pinging echoes of “Plateaux” (reminiscent of Pink Floyd’s Meddle) and then heads into mysterious territory on “Lighten” with its cyber-lounge opening which transforms into a miasmic whirlpool of drones and textures. cyberCHUMP fans who are wondering “Hey, where are the beats?” need wait no longer than track three, “The Atmosphere Next Door” wherein glitch beats meld with electric guitar, Jason Todd’s sultry saxophone and the voice talent of Jeanne Marie Vielleux, yielding a neon-tinted 2 am whisky glow awash in futuristic textures. “Healing Time” explores that lush beautiful electronica exemplified by fellow ambient artists Crown Invisible and Dome (from the Cursor Club consortium), as waves of synths ebb and flow underneath gracefully chattering beats. Of course, Skeel and G.E. are just warming up, and soon head off into familiarly bizarre rhythm fests like the playful “Boogie Caravan (Stratosphere Mix)” with an explosive eruption of trap drum loops in the latter half of the song. The title track pulses and twinkles and whirrs and buzzes with more electronic sounds and effects than you’ll ever be able to keep in focus, which is the point, right? “Spanish Funk” finds a perfect midtempo groove, plants its happy feet, and then proceeds to rip up the place, thanks to Jason Loveall’s flights of fancy on his violin, soaring and dipping over the bed of percolating rhythms. Oh hell, there’s plenty more pleasant musical mayhem awaiting you on Secrets to Tell You, but there’s no sense in my going on further. CHUMPETTES know what’s in store and you rookies will just have to earn your stripes by playing this until your synapses fire in time with the beats, buoyed along by layer upon layer of flowing electronic melodies. Prepare to be dazzled but not dazed. After all, cyberCHUMP are not out to scare you. Maybe shake up your timid narrow view of ambient music a bit, but that’s a good thing, yes? No, in fact, it’s bloody brilliant. Dive in and enjoy, pilgrims! - Bill Binkelman - Wind and Wire
