| Anticon is like a treasure trove of creativity, and when three of its most prolific members get together and combine their heads, the possibilities are endless (not to mention the contributions from Illogic, DJ Signify, Sole, The Wolf Bros., Mr. Dibbs, and The Bay Area Animals). The result in this case is cLOUDDEAD’s self-titled full-length. Originally released on six separate 10” singles, in 2001 they were combined in album format. The lush ambient backgrounds and odd ball beats of Odd Nosdam (pun intended) provide a stage from which Doseone and why? can voice their thoughts like schizophrenic geniuses. The two cover everything from stream of conscious commentary on every day experiences, to instructions on how to survive jumping out of a building. As it was created by combining from six 10” meant to represent 6 different musical movements, it’s no surprise the album seems disjointed. Yet even the individual songs have a kind of disconnected feeling to them; passing from one state to another with every few minutes. They’re like bits and clips of a scrambled sonic jigsaw puzzle. As an example, “I Promise Never to Spill Paint On My Glasses Again Pt. 1” clocks in at 5:46 and features 5 flows (including an appearance by Sole) separated by up to a minute of ambience at a time. There’s no semblance of a chorus or repeated sound loop at all. If a conventional artist were writing the song it might as well have ended up 11 separate tracks, but cLOUDDEAD are anything but conventional. This album makes losing yourself in a dark room easy. - Amp Camp |
3XLP/Out Of Print