SQUAREPUSHER album poll

not sure I agree about the need for a studio album, seens like it would be overkill

Yeah, you're right.

That Boiler Room "Hello Meow" is fantastic.

on a related note, I've been listening to it a lot lately and i've come around to the idea that "hello everything" is his masterpiece

I'm inclined to agree. He doesn't need abrasive sections where everything goes time-stretched and weird to be good and innovative.

Having said that, I also love Go Plastic.

I haven't listened to the much-maligned "go plastic" / "do you know squarepusher" / "ultravisitor" since they came out, but on the strength of "hello everything" i decided to pick up used copies. excited to give them another listen

if you're in the right mood for it Go Plastic is amazing. it's like a Ruins album in a way, it sounds incredibly noisy and somewhat random but once you pick apart the interplay between the different elements it starts to sound quite brilliant. that said I can't bring myself to want to hear it often.

Ultravisitor on the other hand, I think that one might be his best, maybe next to HND - its kind of a summation of everything he can do.

Ultravisitor on the other hand, I think that one might be his best, maybe next to HND - its kind of a summation of everything he can do.

OTM

Yeah I like Ultravisitor too for similar reasons that I defended Druqks for recently! It's a bit of a demo reel but has some keepers on there (though I like the more mellow fusion stuff like Iambic 9 Poetry and Tetra Sync most)

Back in the day I used to hook my iPod up to the speakers across the room when I was playing online poker because my computer speakers sucked. One day "Steinbolt" came up on shuffle and I didn't know what it was, just that it was the craziest and most intense thing I'd ever heard, utterly terrifying but also really awesome (as you can imagine I had the volume cranked up pretty high). Later on I looked to see what it was and was surprised to see it was Squarepusher...I was like, huh, I've listened to this album five or six times, never noticed that track before!

Can't get into Ultravisitor, mostly too self-indulgent.

I love how it's hard to tell where the live ends and begins on Ultravisitor, including mashes of live playing with audience chatter merged into studio recordings. I think it's easily his most psychedelic record - an attribute I wouldn't normally give to Squarepusher.

Ultravisitor is kind of when I stopped being an avid fan really. Not sure if it's just cos it came out when my interest in Warp/IDM was waning or if it was something else, but every succeeding album only got a couple of cursory plays from me. Sqaurepusher is one of these frustrating artists with a huge back catalogue where each release has at least 2-3 incredible songs surrounded by a lot of padding.

each release has at least 2-3 incredible songs surrounded by a lot of padding

yeah, i agree with the broad point, though i would put the number of incredible songs on each album as closer to 4-7. of course 4-7 back to back drill and bass workouts might be more fun in theory than in reality, so maybe there is a reason why he pads his albums out.

His best few albums don't have much padding (I think DL and I have disagreed on that point several times before...).

yeah i'm not sure "padding" is the right word

Ufabulum's frustratingly good in parts and pieces. like in the opener, 4001, the vibe is super chill/melancholy/reflective, but it jumps straight into a dubious stadium-strobe light-blow yr wad chorus. Static Shock is pretty sweet as well. The album is mastered way too loud, it kills the ears. Sounds too much like anxious, monochrome Decepticons, needs more low key chillness.

few say this, but I like Just A Souvenir. Like miniature prog-jazz tunes played by (yep) robots. Mastered super quietly for some reason, but it's one of the few Squarepusher records I'd call "charming"

love how dry those first several tracks are on JAS.. it's great

Shobaleader One is so amazing

lol I was gonna post in here how much I dug Just a Souvenir and Ufabulum. I think if you're gonna follow Squarepusher it really helps to not have any expectations and just listen with an open mind. With JAS I remember a lot of people being disappointed that Squarepusher would put out such a "dumb" record. For me it was like...I've been waiting years for him to do that. Ufabulum I really thought was great, but as pointed out its just too loud, which I think marred his latest album too. I kinda like it when his music is just brainless and fun.

The Coathanger (on JAS) is a good curve ball for a mixed tape, and it's dry- almost grip tape, matte as fuck.

you know what, this Shobaleader album rules, I'm listening to it all the time now.

Liking the new stuff a lot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59ke5hp-p3E

Budakhan Mindphone robbed

it has one good song, but it's one of his best ones. maybe his best one

Yeah that's fair (couple of other good ones too though)

That new track is great, has that constant building-up-to-something tension giving an edge to the acid