Starting just after the turn of the millenium, Daedelus (aka Alfred Weisberg-Roberts) started his prolific output with the album Her's Is on Phthalo Records and has continued with an output of at least one album per year. In addition to that work, he's released a couple EPs, as well as a slew of remix work (which were compiled on last years Exquisite Corpse disc). Denies The Day's Demise is his newest album yet, and it might be his most expansive yet in terms of his overall dash n grab sample mashing. While the chopped-up beats and sense of humor are still firmly in place, the album seems more firmly rooted in bossa nova and even film scores from the 30s and 40s than ever before. Shaker, handclaps, congas, and all kinds of other percussion rattle through the mix, helping to give the crisply-programmed album a touch of humanity and at times a rather off-kilter feel. "At My Heels" opens the disc with swooping string samples, IDM-style beats and a funny old-timey sample of some guy talking about mysterious happenings why spy-theme bass rumbles along. "Sundown" follows and it might be one of the best tracks that Daedelus has ever done. Amir Yaghmai adds some warm, crooning vocals to the track while it twists and turns on analogue synth bursts and shifts about halfway through to a raucous polyrhythmic churner. "Sawtooth EKG" is another exciting track, dropping hard-gated string loops over the top of vocal callouts, horn bursts, and frenetic Brazilian beat programming. The main problem haunting Denies The Day's Demise is the same one that holds back several past releases from Daedelus. While the release is cohesive and fairly entertaining, it could have used a bit more editing in terms of overall running length. Tracks like "Lights Out," "Dreamt Of Drowning" and "Never None The Wiser" seem to have everything in place upon first listen, but do little more than spin their wheels for about three minutes apiece in terms of progressing or adding any substance to the disc. When he's at his best, Daedelus creates some inspired stuff, but in places he slips to fairly familiar loop-based composition territory. - Almost Cool
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2XLP/Out Of Print