Four Tet - Ringer
The four track Ringer EP clocks in at just under half an hour not far off the length of most of today’s current albums. The big question is whether, at four tracks, Ringer justifies the length of exposure Four Tet mastermind Kieran Hebden believes it does. In short it doesn’t. But don’t let that put you off giving this little electronic Frankenstein’s Monster a listen.
The opening track ‘Ringer’ itself is one of the most self indulgent and maniacally esoteric electronic concoctions to have graced the world of music since the collection of near inaccessible tunes compromising Boards of Canada effort ‘Geogaddi’. Yes it really is that frustrating. A futuristic, shimmering, behemoth of a track ‘Ringer’s’ repetitive synthetic whirling is flawed genius at its most flawed - too fast for chilling out to and too slow to dance to. This is music for art galleries, space ships and people doing the Sunday shopping run on mushrooms.
‘Ribbons’ is no less memorable. It’s like listening to an army of space ants chatting to each other in some sort of bizarre technological language only Four Tet can understand. It’s beautiful in the way Eno and Moby can be when they are at their most minimal yet inspired.
In fact it wouldn’t be unfair to suggest Kieran is at the current forefront of electronic music. There is a monumental talent here, whether it’s driven by the curiosity derived from technological experimentation or making music for listening pleasure it’s hard to tell. Particularly as ‘Swimmer’ the third of the tracks sounds like somebody has recorded the sound of a thumping headache onto CD. It’s murderously savage in it’s rhythmic din and woe betide the person brave enough to give it a listen when lying flat on their back, head spinning after a night out on whatever it is the kids drink these days.
‘Wing Body Wing’ sounds much more organically crafted to the point of being relatively pleasurable listening. It’s sort of like a computer program’s figurative representation of Sean Connery reading an Umberto Eco book - soothing, placid and relaxing to the point where you feel sleep can’t be fought any longer. Certainly it’s a perfect comedown to the previous brain haemorrhage inducing mess of ‘Swimmer’.
If Four Tet is the sound of the future - I’m not sure if I want to live there but I’m sure it would make for a bloody interesting holiday.