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 LISTEN + BUY @ AMAZON |
CUT CHEMIST - THE AUDIENCE'S LISTENING (BEATDOWN) |
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"The Audience's Listening" is a clever title and, truth be told, the mind behind this music is clever too, though the listener does leave the CD with a little bit of ambivalence. Cut Chemist is aptly named, as this is a slice-and-dice cutting and pasting going on in a musical "lab" somewhere. By "slice-and-dice ..." I do not mean to be disparaging. I am simply observing. Part of the art of Cut Chemist's offering is the ability to snip together a variety of samples from a variety of sources, wrap some hooky beats around them and send the creations out into the world to do their best. I will say, for an album with strong experimental leanings, it's quite listenable and much of the time, pretty accessible. There are some tracks that are out of left field and will find more appeal with fans of experimental and audio collage artists (though the music is always quite obviously music and not mere sound constructs as with pure-dee experimental). But there are some mainstream listeners will find engaging. The album's high point is probably "The Garden", a track that blends bossa nova, exotic Eastern world flavors and jazz into a compelling style that one wishes was around a lot longer on the CD. Hip-hop also makes a strong showing in the course of the CD. The eclecticism here works both for and against Cut Chemist. The variety is good as listening to an entire track of the more fringe stuff, however accessible it may be, just wouldn't have worked entirely. There's enough traditional song structure to even the most experimental stuff here to make the listener wish it was straightforward - or, if you're an experimental freak, it may be too closely aligned to the mainstream. Of course, I'm sure there's a middle ground audience out there. At any rate, yes, the eclectism is smart and allows Cut Chemist to show off his wares. On the other hand, given the nature of CC's work here, the eclecticism will also leave a lot of listeners - myself included - liking some things but being not so crazy about others. Now, all the tracks here are interesting but that's a double-edged sword. But, in the end (and in all fairness), while I could wish for a whole CD of stuff like "The Garden", a CD like that wouldn't be Cut Chemist. And, I can find that elsewhere. And, it actually doesn't wear out its welcome. This disc is marked by talent and distinction and, while it's certainly not for everybody, there is definitely an audience out there waiting to appreciate it. -- review by Kristofer Upjohn
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