- What unites Red Hot Chili Peppers' lead guitarist and breakcore's enfant terrible? A shared passion for cats, feral breaks choppage and mangled braindance excursions.
- Following two records released over a decade apart, John Frusciante (AKA Trickfinger) and Venetian Snares' Speed Dealer Moms project returns on Evar Records for another round of meticulously detailed drum programming and eccentric arrangements that'll give even the most out-there DJs pause.
On "Birth Control Pill," an opening cycle of hard-panning synth melodies loop for all of 20 seconds before the frenzied percussion begins. Over nine minutes, its intricate breakbeat scaffolding rises and falls repeatedly, calmly resolving in a series of drop-outs that harken back to the impatient shifting of early hardcore. A particularly choice darkside-esque section lasts for barely a minute, but conjures the same tenacity and raw experimentation of the golden era it's referencing.
On first listen, "Benakis" appears to swerve in the opposite direction, giving its cutesy opening lead some room to breathe while blustering drum hits ratchet up the tension. But as its atmosphere evolves into something closer to leftfield techno than breakcore, a rising flurry of acidic zaps and sharp snares squeeze the life out of the ethereal opening refrain. Winding down around the six-minute mark, it feints another breaky section before a series of textured washes finally allow the composition to relax, its final moments evoking a deeply cathartic exhale. It's a perfect final twist on a record that illustrates the duo's (under appreciated) skill in crafting the earnest, contemplative atmospherics that underpin their madcap collaborations.
Tracklist01. Birth Control Pill
02. Benakis