Concept Record not only works as a creative tool; it demonstrates what can be created when Professor Ben’s instruction is heeded. The concept is to use this record alongside other records to make new records, while providing a legitimate D.H.S. album of its own right—one that embraces the features that help make physical records so fun and appealing.
The record is the concept
Ben Stokes is no stranger to concept albums. The albums he has released this century as Dimensional Holofonic Sound (D.H.S., to the initiated) and under the moniker Quietworld could all legitimately be labeled “concept records.” 2002’s Attention Earth People was an ode to ’50s and ’60s sci-fi and outer space. The “disturbing Muzak” of Quietworld’s Relaxalot was like walking through a Backrooms-style retro shopping mall—a boomer’s advertising fever dream. Then came D.H.S.’s 2020 music visualizer, Seeing Is Believing, with the vinyl edition even including a pair of classic red-and-blue glasses for watching the album’s videos online in 3D. Oh, let’s not forget his hand in the Tino’s Breaks series, led by an action figure who serves as an instructor in Latin beats.
So it may seem a bit on the nose that D.H.S.’s new album is titled Concept Record—until you spend time with what Stokes has crafted here. After a couple of playthroughs, you realize the title could also be presented as “Concept: Record,” because on this album, the record is the concept.
Fully realized jams ::
Concept Record is a self-proclaimed “instrument disguised as an album,” according to Dimensional Holofonic Sound’s Bandcamp page, where you can currently pick up both digital and vinyl versions if you’re attentive and lucky enough. That description is certainly apt. Many of the tracks are ripe for a DJ’s arsenal, with loads of potential—and actual—loops throughout. Turntable DJs and creators are especially well equipped, as the double-vinyl version contains fifteen locked grooves with eternally repeating loops that stop only when you lift the needle.
This isn’t merely a scratching record or DJ tool, though. While there are dedicated loop tracks and spoken vignettes, the majority of the album consists of fully realized jams. Many tracks begin stripped back or include sparser sections, seemingly designed to be sampled and looped into new creations, but D.H.S. expertly layers bouncing bass, bleeping synths, effects, and samples onto his beats, building them into genuinely danceable ravers.
Stokes pulls out all his best tricks for this offering, treating us to a smorgasbord of what he’s learned over the last three decades. His ability to evoke nostalgic futurism through vintage dialogue and samples paired with modern electronic sounds is evident from the get-go in the arpeggiated title track, “Concept Record.” There’s the Quietworld-tinged “Hospital Tent,” the glitchy unease of “Chatter,” and the dark horror of “Chit Chat.” His prowess with cut-and-paste breakbeat rhythms is on full display in the Tino-esque “Maestro Music” and caffeinated “Takeoffthecoffeepotweputitdownupright,” and there’s bleep bliss found in the lead single “Supersonic Holofonic,” and cuts “Electro Pop” and “Concept Music,” the latter featuring Oakland musician Konceptualizer. Is that meta enough for you?
Concept Record is another winning concept ::
What shines brightest—and will have you throwing a personal mini-rave in your living room—is the acid, and D.H.S. serves up a potent dose. “Green Acid (Jack Dangers Remix)” is a clear standout, and having Dangers drop in is yet another brilliant treat from Stokes’ bag of tricks. The aforementioned “Supersonic Holofonic” is burbly enough to keep the trip going, blending into the electro-acid of “Cut To Black,” followed by the flashback of the buoyant “Full Blackout.” Now where did I put those glow sticks?
In the end, Concept Record is another winning concept from Ben Stokes. He gives us the record as a musical tool, embodied in the vinyl’s locked-groove loops, and the record as a cohesive collection of songs. The LPs also serve as a unique listening experience, with a slightly altered track order, extra bits, and alternate versions/edits. (“Cut To Black” has a completely different vibe and mix on the vinyl.) Sides 1 and 3 even have zoetrope labels. You can only get that on a record.
An electrified voice at the beginning of “Electro Pop”—at least on the digital version—sums up a core idea well, commanding the listener to “Do things… don’t fritter away your time… create, act… and be somebody.” Concept Record not only works as a creative tool; it demonstrates what can be created when Professor Ben’s instruction is heeded. The concept is to use this record alongside other records to make new records, while providing a legitimate D.H.S. album of its own right—one that embraces the features that help make physical records so fun and appealing. Concept Record succeeds on all counts. A+.
Concept Record is available on Bandcamp.
