Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Warning - Genius at Work, 21 May 2001
Having read about the way that Matthew Herbert makes music out of anything that comes to hand, how he spent 15 minutes of a show in the Royal Albert Hall entertaining the audience by scrunching a crisp packet into a microphone, how this new album features percussion sounds from skin, bones and hair and extensively samples his newborn baby - I was prepared for the depth and variety of sound on the album and the detail and barmy brilliance of the composition...What I wasn't prepared for was quite how purely melodic and emotionally captivating the songs on the album have proved to be... the vocals are hauntingly beautiful and the quality of playing on the piano and strings are also superb... I can't recommend this album highly enough - I buy and listen to a LOT of music, and this is an album of the year for sure... combining the best of electronic music with some beautiful classical musicianship.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
musical, satisfying and interesting, 11 April 2003
"Dance" is a pretty strong word for this, but who's going to call it NuChillOut? ;-) naive female vocals, odd sounds and occasional clips of studio dialogue add a charming homemade feel to what is overall a very classy production. Even when the housey tempos and patterns kick in, clicky found sounds and kitchen drawer percussion keep the vibe more spacious. And over half the tracks, you'd no way ever dance to . they are full-on slow, subdued and ambient to the point of being . . . ponderous. lovely stand-up bass and real pianos lend a hyper-real smooth jazziness which - unless there is something wrong with my system - he then slurs and saturates, which seems kind of contrived to me. The musical ideas are excellent, but the instrumentation, "found" sounds, and avant garde audio-dogma-style manifesto I just read about above, are not fully integrated - contributing more conceptually than aesthetically i reckon. ahem. (The first track is mildly like Diana Krall with someone slurping and rattling a toaster in the background. you dig?) but hey, it's his album. In a year it might sound gimmicky - or timeless. above all this is MUSIC with rhythms, melodies and chords that will not disappoint. a crisp fresh fusion of dance, jazz, and pop with a hint Squarepusher / Aphex -type trickery without which it would actually be traditionally good anyway. recommended.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Fantastic Achievement, 10 Dec 2001
There is only one way to describe Matthew Herbert, and that word is genius. I have always been one for experimental artists at the best of times, but occasionally few pull it off, but with 'Bodily Functions', Herbert has produced one of the best experimental lp's to date. Right from the off, Herbert manages to creat a vibe like no other, combining jazz, deep house, strange human created noises (including his recently new born baby) to amazing affect. For me, there is not a single track on the album which lets it down, it is so consistantly good from start to finish. Stand out tracks include 'I know', 'Addiction' and 'Leave Me Now'. I would recommend this lp to anyone who is willing to give experimental artists a listen, as trust me, you will not find a better example than 'Body Functions'. A true triumph
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