Prefuse 73 (live)
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In an era of widespread digital artistry and eye-blink information traffic, we are so bombarded with the new that simply processing the amount of music emerging from blogs and file-sharing sites can’t help but draw our attention from the existing foundation of musical cornerstones. With so many splashy debuts each week, each month, each year, it’s not uncommon for them to shine brighter in the media than the latest work from an established, proven artist.
Guillermo Scott Herren (aka Prefuse 73) is nothing if not proven. It’s hard to think of a name that carries as much weight in both hip-hop and avant-rock circles as Prefuse 73, who in the past year alone has been asked to remix TV On The Radio, Pelican, BLK JKS and Cornelius, not to mention his early collaborations with School of Seven Bells and Battles. These interactions have clearly helped to shape the evolving Prefuse 73 sonic aesthetic, which has expanded to include Herren’s twisted visions of prog-rock, “machine funk” and global psychedelia.
For Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian, Herren rejected the idea of straight digital recording and instead went the much more intensive route of recording to analog Ampex tape, giving the album the sound of a lost tape of exploratory studio musicians from the not-too-distant past. In addition to the recording process, Ampexian also differs in its composition, existing as a tapestry of tracks of varying lengths and moods, albeit with a remarkable linear flow and, of course, unmatched rhythmic bump.
From the drum machine prog of “Parachute Panador” to the driving noise jam “Violent Bathroom Exchange”, it’s easy to deduce that Prefuse 73 is comfortably stretching out musically. “Nature’s Uplifting Revenge” sounds as if broadcast from from a pirate radio station equally enamored with Animal Collective and J Dilla, while “Simple Loop Choir” is anything but simple…an expansive robo-ballad, featuring a vocoded chorus of Herren’s voice and clouds of analog debris.
The uncommon reach of the album also serves as an oddly appropriate introduction and companion to Guillermo Scott Herren’s newest musical incarnation, Diamond Watch Wrists, and the album Ice Capped at Both Ends. Created with superstar drummer Zach Hill (Hella, Marnie Stern, etc.), DWW shows an entirely new form of Herren creations, organic songs featuring Guillermo’s plaintive vocals, guitar and studio wizardry, Hill’s singular drumming as well as previously unheard nods to 60’s European acid-folk, classic American singer-songwriters and krautrock.
While Herren would call the Diamond Watch Wrists material, “simple songs about everyday things” they, of course, strike the listener as much more. Deceptively complex in their arrangements, the songs never fail to strike a fascinating balancing act between brooding and uplifting, making for an uncommonly well-rounded album.
These two albums are tantamount in their differences, but strong musical and emotional gravity unites them, which will make the spring and summer of 2009 a very interesting time for lucky concertgoers when Prefuse 73 and Diamond Watch Wrists take to the road together for a joint tour across Europe, Japan and the USA. Given the boundless scope of these two projects, there’s little telling what these live experiences won’t touch upon.
From Delarosa & Asora to Savath & Savalas, through to Prefuse 73 and Diamond Watch Wrists, there’s no way to underestimate the reach of Guillermo Scott Herren’s influence and 2009 appears to be a significant culmination of the artist’s most resounding material.
Artist Website
Guillermo Scott Herren (aka Prefuse 73) is nothing if not proven. It’s hard to think of a name that carries as much weight in both hip-hop and avant-rock circles as Prefuse 73, who in the past year alone has been asked to remix TV On The Radio, Pelican, BLK JKS and Cornelius, not to mention his early collaborations with School of Seven Bells and Battles. These interactions have clearly helped to shape the evolving Prefuse 73 sonic aesthetic, which has expanded to include Herren’s twisted visions of prog-rock, “machine funk” and global psychedelia.
For Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian, Herren rejected the idea of straight digital recording and instead went the much more intensive route of recording to analog Ampex tape, giving the album the sound of a lost tape of exploratory studio musicians from the not-too-distant past. In addition to the recording process, Ampexian also differs in its composition, existing as a tapestry of tracks of varying lengths and moods, albeit with a remarkable linear flow and, of course, unmatched rhythmic bump.
From the drum machine prog of “Parachute Panador” to the driving noise jam “Violent Bathroom Exchange”, it’s easy to deduce that Prefuse 73 is comfortably stretching out musically. “Nature’s Uplifting Revenge” sounds as if broadcast from from a pirate radio station equally enamored with Animal Collective and J Dilla, while “Simple Loop Choir” is anything but simple…an expansive robo-ballad, featuring a vocoded chorus of Herren’s voice and clouds of analog debris.
The uncommon reach of the album also serves as an oddly appropriate introduction and companion to Guillermo Scott Herren’s newest musical incarnation, Diamond Watch Wrists, and the album Ice Capped at Both Ends. Created with superstar drummer Zach Hill (Hella, Marnie Stern, etc.), DWW shows an entirely new form of Herren creations, organic songs featuring Guillermo’s plaintive vocals, guitar and studio wizardry, Hill’s singular drumming as well as previously unheard nods to 60’s European acid-folk, classic American singer-songwriters and krautrock.
While Herren would call the Diamond Watch Wrists material, “simple songs about everyday things” they, of course, strike the listener as much more. Deceptively complex in their arrangements, the songs never fail to strike a fascinating balancing act between brooding and uplifting, making for an uncommonly well-rounded album.
These two albums are tantamount in their differences, but strong musical and emotional gravity unites them, which will make the spring and summer of 2009 a very interesting time for lucky concertgoers when Prefuse 73 and Diamond Watch Wrists take to the road together for a joint tour across Europe, Japan and the USA. Given the boundless scope of these two projects, there’s little telling what these live experiences won’t touch upon.
From Delarosa & Asora to Savath & Savalas, through to Prefuse 73 and Diamond Watch Wrists, there’s no way to underestimate the reach of Guillermo Scott Herren’s influence and 2009 appears to be a significant culmination of the artist’s most resounding material.