Toob, an artist I’m unfamiliar with, sounds like it could be a side project from one of the members of Tunng, but stepped up a gear, with more dance friendly beats, and electronica seething through more than the folk. It is in fact a member of Red Snapper, teaming up with a sometime Red Snapper collaborator.
Treetop Frequency starts with a beautifully catchy chopped and sliced acoustic guitar melody, giving way to an electronic pulse, shifting more upbeat with inventive scratching, but scratching with what sounds like a crow’s call! More scratching with bird sounds, then the beat drops, and the pulse of warm synth lines takes the track to the dancefloor. Skinbox keeps the synths in your face, but at a slower death disco pace, punctuated by a moody vocal croon. Open The Gates pushes clicks and cuts into a far darker realm, this time with the synths simmering under the surface, making way for an incoherent vocoder vocal and tribal rhythms. Mr Brown kicks straight in with a Rhythm & Sound style dub skank, without the undercurrent of hiss and noise. Offset (Swamp Mix) digs more into the post-punk sound of yesteryear, but making it very dancefloor friendly.
A surprisingly refreshing album, full of fierce synthesizers, dance friendly beats and new-wave and post-punk references. If you enjoy the output of artists like Optimo, Lemon Jelly and Hot Chip, give this a try, you might be surprised.
Wayne Stronell
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