four tet: c or d; s & d

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so, last night i picked up four tet's "glasshead" single on a whim (half-remembered review p'rhaps?) and if it was possible to retroactively include singles in your best of the 90s, i would. usually jass music (specially lectrified jass) and post-breakbeat material doesn't go together (one of these things is not like the other...) but it's superb. so, is the rest of his(their) output as good as this? when i was being rung up, the counter person mentioned that fridge (?...a side project) was playing philly soon...info?

― jess, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

ah push. push my answer real good.

― jess, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

..and I'd be interested in hearing whether people rate Fridge, especially the 'Eph' album.

― Dr. C, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

I say search out the Pole v. Four Tet EP; that's a goo'un.

― Mark, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

fridge are very very dull, but the four tet side project has yielded some good stuff. Misnomer 12" is the best, and its worth getting on vinyl for the track Aying, which sounds like Tipsy meets Alice Coltrane or something, which is best played at the wrong speed (this track is also on the first album 'Dialogue', as is misnomer). The album itself, Dialogue is a hit and miss affair, with some good stuff, but can descend a bit into 'acidjazzcarchase' in places.

after that, its all ok-ish. when i saw him live earlier this year, it was all a bit worthy.

worth picking up, in a similar vein, is Pnu Riffs 12" with Bhagavather on.

― gareth, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

Four Tet is a Fridge side project, not vice versa - Kieran (4T) is a third of Fridge. I prefer the first Four Tet album to the second (new) one, but Fridge albums get better and better. The first couple were OK but the EPs were far better (collected on "Sevens and Twelves"), while "Eph" and "Happiness" are amazing.

― Andrew Norman, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

Gareth's pretty much on the money, but I'd take 36:25 over Misnomer

― Richard Tunnicliffe, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

i want the new one.

― ethan, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

the new fridge cd is spectacular.

― Brock Kappers, Thursday, 4 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

pole vs fourtet is unbelievable. the four tet mix of oles 'heim' is fucking well nice. i agree with mark.

kieron hebden is quite into garage as well if he ever djs. the best fridge thing to get ever (and the best thing out of all the fridge/fourtet stuff) is the kinoshita terasaka ep.

this is well good. the best take on garage that anyone from this kinda genre's done.

― ambrose, Friday, 5 October 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink

6 years pass...

I'm currently debating whether its worth it to keep or sell my copy of Pause, anything opinions to sway me from this standstill would help.

― mehlt, Monday, 14 April 2008 15:39 (5 years ago) Permalink

I love Pause; it's my favourite Four Tet, so I'd never sell it. If that helps.

― Scik Mouthy, Monday, 14 April 2008 15:43 (5 years ago) Permalink

new ep is awesome

― Catsupppppppppppppp dude 茄蕃, Monday, 14 April 2008 16:06 (5 years ago) Permalink

it is! i was surprised

― jergïns, Monday, 14 April 2008 18:02 (5 years ago) Permalink

good to hear.

― Jordan, Monday, 14 April 2008 18:06 (5 years ago) Permalink

What's it like?

― Scik Mouthy, Tuesday, 15 April 2008 08:40 (5 years ago) Permalink

Strangely, it's mostly Carl Craig/Redshape style space battle techno! With softer kick drums and wibblier melodies. But one of the four tracks sounds like something on Cadenza.

― Tim F, Tuesday, 15 April 2008 09:11 (5 years ago) Permalink

Interesting. Might check this out. Didn't like the last album proper and haven't investigated the collaboration work he's done with thingy.

― Scik Mouthy, Tuesday, 15 April 2008 09:19 (5 years ago) Permalink

i'm really very surprised at how good this new EP is.

― jed_, Saturday, 26 April 2008 13:58 (5 years ago) Permalink

'Pause' is excellent.

― stephen, Saturday, 26 April 2008 23:41 (5 years ago) Permalink

Another fan of 'Pause' here.

― rockapads, Sunday, 27 April 2008 18:23 (5 years ago) Permalink

4 weeks pass...

The new EP sounds like Orbital circa 1994-96!

― Scik Mouthy, Monday, 26 May 2008 13:33 (5 years ago) Permalink

Thankfully, it doesn't

― I know, right?, Monday, 26 May 2008 13:50 (5 years ago) Permalink

I think it does! Obviously, or I wouldn't have said it. It's something about the way the first track is layered and develops (rather than melodic or rhythmic similarities); it's a bit like the way TGWTSIHH unfolds. And one of the other tracks pieces together the rhythm track in a kind of Snivilisation kind of way. I like it.

― Scik Mouthy, Monday, 26 May 2008 15:59 (5 years ago) Permalink

Also, the CD is black, like an old Playstation game or something (or was it Xbox games that came on black discs?); that's supercool.

― Scik Mouthy, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 07:57 (5 years ago) Permalink

It feels more like cluster to me, a techo cluster.

― I know, right?, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 10:47 (5 years ago) Permalink

Never listened to Cluster. Should I?

― Scik Mouthy, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 19:00 (5 years ago) Permalink

YES

― These Robust Cookies, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 19:30 (5 years ago) Permalink

Nick, I think you'd really like the Zuckerzeit and (esp) Sowiesoso albums.

― willem, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 22:28 (5 years ago) Permalink

I'll second that -- Cluster is gonna be right up your alley, Nick. Start with Zuckerzeit and move forward/back from there. That's how I got into em, worked great!

― stephen, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 22:58 (5 years ago) Permalink

I dig Pause, Rounds, and Everything Ecstatic - I think they're all terrific. Yet to hear the Steve Reid collaborations, and didn't know about a new ep but now I'm gonna seek it out.

― pgwp, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 23:03 (5 years ago) Permalink

i think it's the best thing he's done.

― jed_, Tuesday, 27 May 2008 23:16 (5 years ago) Permalink

I wouldn't go that far, but it's bitchin' anyway.

― I know, right?, Wednesday, 28 May 2008 01:47 (5 years ago) Permalink

Live with Steve Reid was pretty woejus last year. Neither of them would lead so whenever anything good was about to happen it'd just peter out waiting for one of them to take charge.

Looking forwards to hearing the remixes, not so much the EP.

― hyggeligt, Wednesday, 28 May 2008 08:10 (5 years ago) Permalink

"Orbital circa 1994-96"
"techo cluster"

Oh, you get my hopes up so. But as someone who dug early Fridge and was disappointed when they started discovering jazz, I've always found Four Tet a bit dull (and not in a way I enjoy, I suppose I should point out, since I like the Fridge tracks collected on Sevens and Twelves despite them seeming an almost purposeful exploration of boredom, a drum-machined Tortoise with any human emotion squeezed out). Will this change my mind?

(I do really like the track on the split with Pole - "Cload", I think)

― a passing spacecadet, Wednesday, 28 May 2008 10:07 (5 years ago) Permalink

2 months pass...

The Ringer Ep is definitely one of my favorite listens of the year, very 'krautrockish' and lots of detail on melody and sounds. Hope he continues on a similar path for the next album.

― Moka, Sunday, 24 August 2008 21:01 (4 years ago) Permalink

i was just listening to "ringer" tonight! it's wonderful.

― Emily Bjurnhjam, Monday, 25 August 2008 01:47 (4 years ago) Permalink

yep, Ringer makes my top 10 of the year so far, easy.

already gonna be EP of the year no doubt.

― stephen, Tuesday, 26 August 2008 02:15 (4 years ago) Permalink

A great mini-album--parts of this remind me of what I liked about Carl Craig's "Relevee" remix for Delia & Gavin...

― Craig D., Tuesday, 26 August 2008 02:41 (4 years ago) Permalink

2 weeks pass...

I just got Ringer yesterday and it was pleasantly different from earlier Four Tet stuff. A lot more overtly dancey--I think that 4/4 bass beat is in three out of the four songs. Also, each song has a distinct personality from the others--not something I could say about Everything Ecstatic (though I do like that record).

After it was over, Rounds came on (alpha order and all). I usually listen to all my Four Tet stuff in a big random mix. I completely forgot just how solid Rounds is from beginning to end.

― pgwp, Wednesday, 10 September 2008 21:01 (4 years ago) Permalink

Has anyone heard those Keiren Hebden/Steve Reid albums? Any thoughts? Is one better than the other?

― scott pgwp (pgwp), Friday, 12 September 2008 01:52 (4 years ago) Permalink

3 months pass...

I've been listening to the Born Ruffians remix thingy he did non stop for the last few days and I looked up the original on youtube and its amazing how good this is in light of how rubbish the source material is.

― Plaxico (I know, right?), Friday, 9 January 2009 19:12 (4 years ago) Permalink

3 years pass...

Never realised before that this *isn't* the released version of Unspoken:

― djh, Tuesday, 7 August 2012 22:03 (10 months ago) Permalink

Same here- had the promo so only found out years later!

I like this version with the winter sample better.

― sktsh, Wednesday, 8 August 2012 23:09 (10 months ago) Permalink

if anyone would like to share their top ten four tet bangers i would be obliged!!

― no fear, Tuesday, 14 August 2012 15:29 (10 months ago) Permalink

1) Smile Around The Face

― Shepton Mullet (White Chocolate Cheesecake), Tuesday, 14 August 2012 15:30 (10 months ago) Permalink

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