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26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
what is a "Coldcut album" anyway...?, February 23, 2006
Guitars... repetitive drum machine patterns... indie rock-ish vocals about dialing a phone and going to work... did I mention guitars? This wasn't exactly what I expected to hear when listening to Coldcut's new album Sound Mirrors, the pioneering electronica duo's first full-length effort in almost nine years.
But that is indeed what you get on the first track, and you're going to hear many, many more vocalists too, including Roots Manuva, Annette Peacock, and Robert Owens. In fact, the majority of this album's 12 tracks are basically 3-to-5 minute iPod-friendly "pop songs" complete with lyrics, hooks, choruses, and danceable 4/4 beats.
Well, damn -- that kind of sucks. I was thoroughly prepared to dismiss Sound Mirrors as a major disappointment from this legendary duo... but then I decided to reflect upon my expectations: Why were they so high? Why do I equate "Coldcut" with greatness? And what kind of cold cuts taste best on white bread?
When you really think about it, Coldcut (a.k.a. Jonathan More and Matt Black) haven't really given us much in the way of "original material" to compare this music with. Their last album, Let Us Play!, was a hit-or-miss eclectic hodgepodge of semi-experimental jazzy electronica, much of it derived from samples and influenced by collaborators such as Jello Biafra, Bernard Purdie, and Steinski. Probably the best thing about the album was "More Beats and Pieces," a breakbeat cut-and-paste/sample-and-scratch fest in the tradition of their coveted 1987 single "Hey Kids, What Time is It?" and (naturally) the original "Beats and Pieces" -- and all of these are exciting feats of dazzling production skill. (Actually now that I think about it, probably the very greatest thing to come out of Let Us Play! was the Cornelius remix of "Atomic Moog 2000" on Let Us Replay!)
The other Coldcut claims to fame are their incredible ability to sequence and combine other artists' tracks to form a unified mix (best heard on the awe-inspiring 70 Minutes of Madness and their Solid Steel radio show) and, of course, founding the revered Ninja Tune record label -- home to an impressive roster of underground "trip hop"/"acid jazz" artists including Amon Tobin, The Herbaliser, Cinematic Orchestra and Mr. Scruff. (Coldcut also developed the VJamm software tool which I know nothing about, but I'm sure it's pretty cool.)
So essentially, music-wise, Coldcut has consistently delivered mindblowing mixes, radical remixes, innovative productions, cool compilations, and zany cut-up collages. Maybe it shouldn't be such a surprise, then, that Sound Mirrors feels more like a collection of unrelated collaborations than an actual "Coldcut album" -- but maybe that's what a "Coldcut album" actually is. Clearly most of the "featured artists" here are in the mood to craft poppy/clubby dance tunes, and More and Black happily comply... and if it's expertly produced electro-pop you seek, you'll be happy too. If you're expecting to hear virtuoso studio wizardry and wild cut-and-paste sonic mayhem, though, you'll be somewhat disappointed. (Incidentally, the album's packaging is terribly flimsy and hard to manage, and the fold-out poster-style lyrics/credits sheet is nearly unreadable... but you do get a Coldcut.net sticker to put on your skateboard.)
There are a few tracks that hint at the Coldcut I was hoping to hear. "Mr. Nichols" and "Boogieman," featuring spoken word by Saul Williams and Amiri Baraka respectively, are rather edgy sonic soundscapes refreshingly free of cliches. And the album ends well with a pair of atmospheric, mostly instrumental tracks: the title tune "Sound Mirrors" and "This Island Earth" -- an agreeably breezy, Air-esque track with nicely layered vocal harmonies by Mpho Skeef and Don Freeman (yes, Mpho Skeef -- that is not a typo...)
Overall, though, this is basically a "mainstream" electronica/pop record -- easy on the ears and fun for the feet. If that's the Coldcut you crave, look no further.... but if you have an appetite for "Even More Beats and Pieces," you've come to the wrong deli.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
disappointment, September 15, 2006
I've beena fan of Coldcut for sometime but this new album is nowhere near the quality of prior release. gone are the cut-ups and abstract hip hop feel. these are all traditional songs. the main problem is their choice of singers and lameness of the songs sung. An instrumental version of this cd would be much better. I listened to it maybe twice and will most likely not dig it out again. I've tried to like it but it justs sounds too much like their trying to be played on the radio.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Coldcut shows a new side..., April 2, 2006
I must say, I have to disagree with the two prior reviews (for the most part). I have "Let us Play!" and it's a brilliant album, but do you honestly expect them to put out another "More Beats and Pieces" nine years after the original? They have grown, matured, shifted directions, however you want to put it, and we should encourage their evolution.
This album clearly demonstrates where Jonathan More and Matt Black find themselves in their career. Having run the fabulously innovative and successful Ninja Tune label for several years now, they have embraced their roles as producers and this album is as much a showcase for fresh and versatile talent as it is an album by an independent artist. And if you'd listen to the first episode of their podcast, you'd hear them say that their studio wizardry is as strong as ever, though perhaps more conservative.
Though I'm willing to concede that this album isn't as fantastically original as their past work, I fail to see how a somber and illuminating collaboration with poet Saul Williams, or more generally, any departure from their (un)usual style, is in any way "tired". And god forbid they should drop a few danceable tracks in there. I'm a DJ, and while I appreciate some complicated auditory textures and layers in an artist's work, I have to say some of the danceable tracks on this album are super-fresh and I WILL be spinning them on the dance floor (and in my opinion, the best albums usually have a healthy balance of cerebral and corporeal tracks).
Sound Mirrors is a bit unexpected, but the old Coldcut is still there in many ways. The album still smacks of their antiestablishment beliefs and, as Mr. Funk mentioned, rather than splicing samples together, Coldcut has begun splicing artists. The album does lean a bit more towards the "mainstream" as he mentioned, but that doesn't make it bad. I've shirked my anti-mainstream ways because, let's face it, some mainstream music is actually good (albeit overplayed).
If you're interested in hearing an album that demonstrates a new facet of Coldcut's prismatic talent, buy this album. If you're open to a diverse collection of songs within a single 70-minute work, buy this album. If you want to hear bizarre, eccentric, and outlandish soundscapes, purchase a few songs from this album on iTunes and go check out the rest of the Ninja Tunes catalogue.
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