After his considerably light-hearted "Chocolate Wheelchair" album, Aaron Funk returns with the more serious and intricate "Huge Chrome Cylinder Box Unfolding". The strange title is fitting: it's an album full of metallic, elaborate and evolving tracks, and is a lot darker and more serious than its predecessor. The opener, "Huge Chrome Peach", sets the scene with a light but unsettling synth backed by sharp drums sequenced in the complex style that has become a trademark of Mr. Snares. It's good to see some new ideas being put into use on this album: some circuit bending of a speak and spell is present on tracks "Keek" and personal favourite "Ion Divvy"; there is definitely an 8-bit feel to a lot of the synths overall.
Although not dark in the same way that his earlier stuff is. Where "Doll Doll Doll", for example, used nightmarish spoken word samples to weave its atmosphere, HCCBU uses subtlety and restraint. All of the tracks share the same dark, edgy atmosphere and it is a ittle samey in places, but on the whole it's an incredible album.
There is still the original snares style that fans have grown to love, the brilliantly named "Destroy Glass Castles" for example sounds like a robot attaching a million paperclips to itself and rolling down a mountain made of circuitboards. This is definitely more of a mature sound from Funk and demonstrates his progression technically and musically very well.
Anyone that liked winter in the belly of a snake is sure to love this album just as much, if not more. This album is simply mind blowing. Buy it