[minya]

I wanted to give everyone a heads-up on the new Funkstörung album because it's totally surprising and I think several in here would enjoy it.

Funkstörung's past work has ranged from dull acid techno (their earliest work) to dull Autechre ripoff (their middle period work) to what they're making now, an unprecedented (within their own oeuvre, that is) infectious blend of electronic pop and hip-hop.

Hip-hop fans will enjoy those tracks on Disconnected which feature Tes, an American MC from Lex Records, Warp's hip-hop imprint. However, what really got me (and this is where the album reaches mass-crossover appeal, IMO) are the tracks featuring vocals by Enik, a German guy who sounds -- quite literally -- like Björk's male doppelganger. Rarely am I fond of vocals in my music, but Enik's voice is amazing, and his contributions totally seal the deal for me. Wonderful, wonderful stuff.

If you like Portishead, Björk, etc. I recommend you give Disconnected a listen. This album has a lot of potential, IMO, and it's an interesting new addition to Funkstörung's repertoire.

- Chris

 

[WraithApe]

Cheers for the heads up. Big Bjork fan myself (pre-Volta anyway: at one time I owned everything she ever put out on CD although I came to my senses and thinned down the collection to the essentials!). Portishead are great too - some of the best trip hop recorded imo.
 
Not sure I totally agree with your take on Funkstörung's back catalogue though: I found much to like on Appetite For Disctruction - I think they had their own sound at that time (late Nineties/early Noughties), best exemplified on the two remix compilations Viceversa and Additional Productions. The latter in particular had some cracking remixes like the Wu Tang Clan 'reunix'. At that point, I think Funkstörung's sound had more in common with cut-up glitch merchants like edIT, MD and Prefuse 73 than with Autechre - although I guess you may be referring to a different point in their career with the Autechre comparison; my knowledge of their oeuvre is somewhat limited.
 
Anyway, from the way you've described it, Disconnected sounds well worth a listen - I'll definitely be giving it a spin!