AFX - Hangable Auto Bulb (CD)

All Music Guide

Four months after Warp released the 11th Analord volume, the label combined the two Hangable Auto Bulb singles from 1995 and issued the result as this convenient disc, a way to signify the 10th anniversary of the original vinyl releases. A lot of IDM analysts point to these tracks as drill'n'bass at its most innovative and best, and it would be difficult to devise a convincing opposing argument, unless it's possible to make early Squarepusher releases seem as if they're untethered and elaborate for more than the sake of being untethered and elaborate. "Hangable Auto Bulb" itself is the central track, initially a thrillingly unpredictable labyrinth of timestretched sounds, skidding drum patterns, firing ride cymbals and ambient chords that would be effective on their own. After that first braced listen, it reveals the kind of complex arrangement of sounds that demonstrates how Richard D. James wasn't splattering his components willynilly. If that doesn't get the point across, "Laughable... Butane Bob" will, as it magnifies its parent track in most ways, from the furtherdeveloped melody to the crisper percussion rushes. James would apply the root ideas explored here to the more sinister and humorous Come to Daddy, but this is an undeniably pivotal part of the man's discography. - Andy Kellman, All Music Guide Read more Less