• Search
• Subscribe

It's certainly the case that not all new music need be super ground breaking or painfully avant-garde for it to be worthwhile, just as long as it's done well.  One such prime example would be Delusional Tales and Non-Silence - a debut album for artist and label alike which comes on LA imprint, Culprit.

The man behind it is Kenneth James Gibson and, whilst you may not recognise that name immediately, it's likely you'll have been lost in one of his productions at some point or another given his prolificacy under aliases like Reverse Commuter, Eight Frozen Modules and [a]pendics.shuffle for outlets including Leftroom, Superfreq and Trapez.

With so many aliases it's a wonder Gibson's debut full length is as coherent as it is.  That's not to say it's homogenous, far from it, but with cute sound design and a pointillist approach to production, he manages to lay down ten seven minute plus tracks which are all pure dancefloor/after party territory but which - as is often the way with dance albums - don't become tiresome before the final beat has fallen.  And that's no mean feat.

Putting the fun into functional, Gibson reflects the musical make-up of his home city as he goes: from the sweaty, punchy rhythms of 'We Can Do That, No?' and 'Give it Up, Let it Go' to foresty and serene cuts like 'Brisk Defiance' via wonky, heads-down house like 'Relying Heavily On,' the tracks here represent a city made up of dark basement parties and cavernous warehouse shindigs alike.

Tracks like the deep, loop laden and late-night vocal jam 'This whole time' cry out to be remixed, whilst the many interwoven layers of plump beats and rippling, muffled melodies of 'Another Answer' drag you into their gloopy world and float you wilfully along on soupy rhythms and fluttering calypso drums for seven liquid minutes.

There are hints of Martin Buttrich's clean, polished production and trippy dashes of Freak n Chic wooziness but nothing overtly copycat on offer here - just pure dancing material.  Compare this to the similarly dance floor centric music of labels like 8Bit, Cecille, Oslo and the others, though, and, well, it's no comparison.  Where those tracks may sound good for the first few listens, the devilish detail of Delusional Tales and Non-Silence means it stands up to, and in fact demands, repeat listening. 

Artist: Kenneth James Gibson Title: Delusional Tales & Non-Silence Label: Culprit Tracklist 01. You Remind Me 02. We Can Do That 03. Brisk Defiance 04. Give It Up, Let it Go 05. Another Number 06. Animals Tonight (KJG Dub Version) 07. Relying Heavily On 08. Painted Eyes 09. This Whole Time 10. Something in The Way (Extended Mix in 3 Passages)      www.culpr.it www.myspace.com/kennethjamesgibson Our Rating: 8/10