As I race through my thirties, accelerating at an ever-increasing speed towards the end of a fourth decade, I’m reminded constantly of my past as yet another fashion cycle or musical trend is appropriated. Sure, I didn’t mind rediscovering, mining and eulogizing my old man’s music heritage, but with the revisionist obsession of late, everyone is leaving less of a time-frame between when a genre ended and is then reactivated. To be honest I’m feeling rather uneasy about it all. And so as the 90s become the new 80s, floods of band reformations and re-released material from a mourned decade, merely 12-years dead, now shape the ‘post-postmodernist’ musical world. Of course the 90s were great; music hadn’t quite hit a brick wall of progression. Hip Hop, post-rock, indie and especially dance music were still growing; finding innovative directions, and the last breathe of originality.
Dance music, initially, influenced greatly by the developments of electronic music in 70s Germany (Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Cluster to name just a few), had found new exciting avenues via the House, Garage, Acid-House and Techno movements during the 80s – both in the US and Europe, though Japan was also an early convert. Into the 90s, and these popular dance movements split into ever-more experimental niches, including the breakbeat initiated Jungle and D’n’B genres. One of the bright sparks, and serial jesters of the scene, Luke Vibert playfully juggled around with and weaved an omnivorous synthesis of styles, samples, reference points and loops into his characteristically entertaining blueprint.
Part of the UKs west country scene that spawned such notable techno-heads and ambient magi as Richard James, Tom Middleton, Grant Wilson-Claridge and Jeremy Simmonds; Vibert is perhaps best known for his work as Wagon Christ, of which he garnered an eager following and success. Already signed to the majors, and doing rather nicely, under his pseudonym, Vibert’s extra-circular exploratory activities with ‘Avant-jungle‘ were channeled towards a separate project and released under the Plug moniker. The first and only album from this new endeavor was the influential, but sorely ignored, ‘Drum’N’Bass For Papa’; a record that found scant attention from the purist camp (labeled ‘Kitschtronica’) it nevertheless inspired and spawned artists such as Squarepusher. Now as both a reminder, and as an unearthed artifact – a missing link – from the time line of dance music; previously unreleased, and forgotten about, DATs from 1995-1998 have been collated together for this long awaited sophomore follow-up, Back On Time.
Striking a balance between experimental playfulness and ready-made club environment big-hitters, Vibert’s ten-track oeuvre stretches it’s D’n’B template to the limit – sometimes pushing the patience of the listener a little too far, and losing its way in the process. Manipulating convention to evoke the odd, and sometimes whimsical, there is a cacophony of cartoon effects; shameless Big Beat bombast; metaphorical drug-alluded dialog; and ad-hoc transcendental Indian vibes on show. From the inaugural soulful Garage D’n’B galloping ‘Scar City’ – Jungle-soul via Felix da Housecat – to the acid-breakbeat gospel of ‘Mind Bending’, Vibert meanders through a colorful collage; blending together the influences of jazz (‘Flight 78’), old-skool 808 stabs (‘Back On Time’) and N.Y funk (‘Yes Man’) to carve out an, often, unique sound.
Not to be taken too seriously, the Plug character is an essential window on the UKs electronic music scene; when it was still injected with fun – just check out the LPs cover, which features an unconvincing Fu Manchu like costumed conjurer photo of Vibert’s magician grandfather, to get the mischievous message at the heart of this record. An enjoyable treat for both the keenest and most fair-weathered of Jungle/D’n’B fans.
09/01/2012
[Rating:3.5]
http://www.myspace.com/lukevibertacid
