Artist of the Day: Four Tet

Despite the fate of many of his 90's-electronic-minded contemporaries, Four Tet has managed to hold onto both (a) a consistent release schedule and (b) a lot of the quality that he so devilishly displayed at the turn of the century. Nevertheless, the release of a new LP following the ever promising "I'm going to release an LP today" post to his Facebook page will bring back a lot of the creative joy not seen since his earlier releases. 0181 is a collection of tracks plucked from the 1997-2001 vault, so as such reflects style that he's since moved away from. What the listener yet uneducated in the world of Four Tet will find is quite a lot of jazz, or at least that mindset. Time signatures are played around with liberally, and it's not unusual to hear a bit of brass thrown in to the mix. Beyond this you'll hear a strong influence of that ever contentious brand of 90's braindance: an eternal signature of the veteran producer. Everything is coloured by a deeply playful vibe, even when the album chooses to give respite in its 40 minute duration to something more low-key. It really is a fantastic listen despite not previously considered for release.

The album can be streamed and downloaded (for free) on Soundcloud.
Like Four Tet on Facebook!