It’s been a surprisingly quiet year for Venetian
Snares’s Aaron Funk, with just one album released
on Hymen earlier this year, and this one, pencilled
for release for some time and finally made available.
If the last in last year’s trilogy of albums published
on Planet Mu, Winter
In The Belly Of A Snake, showed Mr. Snare at
his more accessible, The Chocolate Wheelchair Album
returns to the more upfront and arrogant smashed-up
drill of Higgins
Ultra Low Track Glue Funk Hits. But nothing
is ever straightforward with Venetian Snares, and this
new album takes once again some liberties with the genre.
It seems almost incredible that Canadian-born Aaron
Funk only shot to fame a couple of years ago with his
collaboration with Speedbranch. Yet, in this short time,
he has become somewhat of a figure on the electronic
scene, alongside the likes of Aphex
Twin and Squarepusher.
His tortured beats, cartoonesque melodies and heavy
use of samples have attracted as many detractors as
fans, and this new album will do nothing to change people’s
mind. Kicking off this album is Aaron’s trashed
version of the long-running British soap Coronation
Street theme tuned, so mashed-up and lacerated that
it is barely recognisable, Abomination Street
(does Aaron Funk really watch Corry?) is fuelled with
jazz, hip-hop and dub references, instantly setting
the tone for what’s to come. The Chocolate
Wheelchair is Venetian Snares reclaiming ownership
of the dance floor. Landslide, Epidermis
or Herbie Goes Ballistic are as many tribute
to the head banging community, with Hand Throw
adding raga influences courtesy of a Belgian MC. With
these tracks, Funk goes into overdrive, surfing his
way through more hyperactive beats than ever. Yet, as
he proved with Winter
In The Belly Of A Snake, he can also produce
more mature and structured music. Too Young,
Funk’s reworking of the Mötley Crüe
song Too Young To Fall In Love is hip-hop on
acids, while he toys with dancehall, be it perverted,
on the recent Einstein-Rosen Bridge single.
Sky Painted On Car is suspiciously reminiscent
of µ-ziq’s
sonic realm circa Tango’n’Vectif,
although the infectious underlying dub groove would
point toward Mike Paradinas’s
more recent musical excursions.
Once again, Aaron Funk is determined not to follow any
other rules than his own. He might not be responsible
for inventing drill’n’bass, but he can certainly
be credited for blowing the fun element out of proportion.
The Chocolate Wheelchair album is a clever
record on which Funk juggles with genres and moods with
as much conviction and determination as on his previous
releases.
4.2/5 |
