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Basement Wigger
- A Celebration of the Concept of the People's Republic of North Korea
(Trotch)
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| The (Democratic) People's Republic of North Korea is a totalitarian dictatorship with a long-standing and extensive record of human rights violations, political intolerance and extreme closedness to the outside world. Fortunately for us, this album comes from a peace-lovin' socialist welfare paradise (Canada), and its title is certainly ironic. Phew. |
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Dac Chartrand is the dubiously monikered Basement Wigger, reviving so-called ‘intelligent’ drum and bass with a bizarre mixture of arcane video game soundbites and the odd pinko MC. The album maintains a real bite throughout its majority, being chiefly concerned with chugging, energetic breaks. Chartrand's dnb style is schizophrenic, veering maniacally in between Photek-like precision, Ed Rush-like sometimes-stolid darkness and Squarepusher-like insane gibbering of beats. A Celebration has enough intricate beat meat to maintain a listener's healthy fascination for some time, and generally avoids the beat-related introversion or anality that is typical for your average Roni Size impersonator.
(Note: due to the incomprehensible track-naming, I am forced to refer to them numerically.)
Within its wavering styles, A Celebration embraces kitsch musical paraphernalia and capriciousness, like the nostalgic electronic syntheticism of tracks three and five placed slap-bang next to tracks four and six’s sturdy and driving beats. Audacious, energetic and resolute but at the same time tongue-in-cheek; a concoction that is difficult to pull off without either seeming humorously limp or just over-serious.
But A Celebration does have a few rough spots, mostly where the beats are a little too repetitive or the slapstick combination of video game samples and beat-crunch doesn't quite entice. The jolly bleeping chortle of track nine becomes a rather dry listen, and track two’s less inspiring rhythm and structure feels like it is somewhat letting down the otherwise strong introduction to the album.
Basement Wigger might not be for the musical everyman perhaps; it's the kind of music that mothers across the world would probably refer to as ‘noise’ (and therefore might be useful material if you want to irritate rock-zealot friends). But if you desire some delicate or brutal beats, a combination of hard-edged and playful sensibilities, then you could do worse than to pick this up. Might make you feel more Red, might make you start to appreciate North Korean propaganda-art, and after all, as MC Regimental says, there “ain't no living like a communist.” Well said indeed. |
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| Stuart Reeves - 7/10 |
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