- It's no secret that Kevin Martin loves dub and all its offshoots. King Midas Sound seemed like his outlet for its slow, steady and sensual sector, especially after 2009's fabulously intimate Waiting For You on Hyperdub. Now snapped up by Ninja Tune, the group does a sharp 180, beating their sound into a bloody pulp with militant muscle and a wall of shoegaze guitars. Imagine the aggression of Martin's unforgettable London Zoo rubbed raw and let loose.
There aren't many traces of dub in "Aroo," which snaps its giant maw open and shut with a hefty crunch. Vocalist Kiki Hitomi's distinctive squawk turns menacing—"I'm getting close to you, aroo!" It's huge—just try to resist shouting along—and its insistent rat-a-tat-tat drum machine attack turns the meditative repetition of their Hyperdub work into an angry barrage of gravel and spit. Airy and lightweight, "Funny Love" could be a look back at older days. The thick blur from "Aroo" is still there, but now it's warm and clear, carrying clips of Roger Robinson and Hitomi on its fragrant breeze. At the very least, it's pleasant, and enough to whet the appetite for the group's next album, whatever it might sound like.
TracklistA Aroo
B1 Funny Love
B2 Funny Love (Instrumental)