| Too often, music gets arrogant. It looks down on its listeners from its high pedestal of artistic perfection with contempt. Particularly in the eclectic underground hip-hop and electronic scene do we find artists who play a ridiculous game of one-upmanship with each other. Pieces are created that are so dense, so complex, so difficult that they end up sounding like total crap (see: Squarepusher). It's not that these artists are incapable of making great sounding and accessible music. But hey, they don't want to sell out. They want to keep it underground! So be it. Enter Fat Jon the Ample Soul Physician and his fabulous new CD Wave Motion. This is instrumental hip-hop at its finest. Is it Endtroducing...? No. While Dj Shadow's seminal debut was a fascinating journey through mind and space, Fat Jon's music is steadfastly rooted to the Earth. The beats are not overly complex. But when they're this good, they don't have to be. Each thump of the drums snaps your ears while the basslines roll through your braincage. Songs like "Watch Out" and "Wet Secrets" are straight up jams that are at least the equal of the best 90's jazzy hip-hop. But this is an album that can really sneak up on you. Like a Kind of Blue, you don't even consider the details of this CD until you've listened to it a couple of times. The album is very inviting on the first listen, very accessible. But repeated listens of "Feel the Void," "Visual Music," and "Automated Life Machines" make you realize how great a producer Fat Jon is. Each song is a study of calculated restraint. Bottom line - all hip-hop heads need this album. Even those who just appreciate a groove or are fans of jazz should give it a hard look. It's just a fabulous album and, hopefully, portends great things in the future for Fat Jon. - Chester's Blanket Fort |
1XLP/Out Of Print