Maverick label Tigerbeat6 introduces two new releases, the first a full-length promo sampler in association with UK magazine The Wire and the second a 5-track EP from Kevin Blechdom (one half of Blectum for Blechdum). The sampler – entitled The Beat Goes Off! – is a showcase of a whole range of artists from the Tigerbeat6 stable while I Love Presetsshows Blechdom’s love of presets and her vocal abilities.
The Beat Goes Off! provides an excellent cross-section of the diversity of the acts released through the Tigerbeat6 label. Presenting tracks ranging from experimental electronic music thru hip-hop, rap and noise, the label is never slow at pushing the boundaries of the electronic genre. Moving away from the experimental electronic material they originally became known for, this compilation brings rap from Cex, acid hip-hop from Gold Chains, electro new wave from Numbers and electronic easy listening music from Casino vs. Japan vs. Nudge. The experimental electronic genre is not totally discarded as (occasionally odd) tracks from Kid606, COM.A, Nathan Michael, Lesser and Blectum From Blechdom prove.
Of particular interest are an infectiously brilliant rap track from Cex entitled “Brutal Exposure”, cool beat abstraction from Dwayne Sodahberk in the form of “Devoiced (Edit)”, the pulsating melody of Electric Company’s “Siamang” and the pounding digital mayhem of Lesser’s “Untitled_11 (2001)”. Elsewhere we are exposed to the cool digital remix mayhem that is DJ Rupture’s remix of “I Remember Nothing More” by Cul De Sac – retitled “Needlepoint” – and Electric Company vs. Lexaunculpt’s “The Billingus Cufflinks”.
Common to both the The Beat Goes Off! and I Love Presetsreleases is Kevin Blechdom’s “Interspecies Love”, a very catchy track with the obligatory use of presets and trashy pop vocals. The remaining 4 tracks on the I Love PresetsEP are more of the same and, while they might rely on presets and sickly sweet vocal delivery, they have an undeniable addictive quality. Concentrating mostly on pop tunes with a brief rap interlude in the form of “Talkin’ Tech”, the EP closes with a cover of Tina Turner’s “Private Dancer” that gives the original the new wave meets cabaret treatment. The sort of EP that, depending on your perspective, is either great fun or totally annoying.
