Four Tet, a.k.a. Kieran Hebden, is a U.K. electronica artist whose diverse tastes have helped fuel a lengthy discography. Since his start with the post-rock band Fridge in the mid-'90s, Hebden has amassed a body of work that showcases his astounding versatility. He's remixed Aphex Twin, Black Sabbath, Radiohead and dozens more, while his collaborations with jazz drummer Steve Reid are a study in genre splicing.
As Four Tet, Hebden is fixated on trying every flavor of electronic music, and his new album, There Is Love in You, orders a heaping dollop of dubstep and left-field techno. "Love Cry" tips the scales at nine minutes, but its length is justified with ethereal hums and inviting vocal samples. The dance beat makes the experimentation easy to stomach, and finds Hebden sounding unafraid to put four on the floor.
As they race around and around, the vocal cuts begin to lap one another, bringing multiple voices into the mix. The beat repeatedly builds and falls until it melts off and gives way to pleasant guitar samples. The track may be structured like something out of a nightclub, but its sounds and textures aren't nearly so aggressive. This dance music only reaches the hips incidentally, on its way to the brain.
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