ATTENTION BLUNT SMOKERS AND BASS AFICIONADOS: Put down that spliff and take notice! Larvae has come to warp your minds and clutter your eardrums with some low-frequency sonics. Clocking in at an understated 46 minutes, Fashion Victim, the project's debut album, provides a somewhat noisy take on the bong-worthy dark urban sound (formerly known as illbient) produced by acts like Scorn, DJ Spooky, and Witchman. Taking equal parts Scott Herren and Mick Harris, "Refuse" opens this album with stuttering samples, bold bass tones, and head-nodding drum loops.Ad Noiseam
The cheekily titled "Tonystark" ('YO, that be some a dat Iron Man shit, ya heard?') follows a similar model while maintaining a sparser and more airy feel. Keeping with that mood, the title track spills from the speakers and wraps itself around the room much like the essence billowing from the glass blown pipe in front of you now, and actually reminds me of some of the tracks on the little-heard Wordsound Records album from The Weakener (Yes, I know this is the third Mick Harris reference! I call them as I see them!) Going in a slightly more experimental direction, "Redline Version" begins with a distinctly Asian woodwind sound before dropping a diabolical breakbeat. The soft and synthy bed that comprise the first minute-and-a-half of "Philistine" serves as a hypnotic pillar for the smooth rhythms and aquatic AFX-like melodies that enter into the mix. There are occasional moments where the exquisitely mental drum n bass sound of Larvae's Monster Music EP presents itself ('I Owe You' and 'Crazyeye', for example), but for the most part the mood stays slow and remains relatively deep and mellow throughout. On a final note, I have to thank Larvae for letting the beats speak for themselves, as opposed to including mediocre rappers or other guest vocalists over their grinding hip hop grooves (cough Pole cough cough). I have no knowledge whether or not Mr. Jeanes and company are aware of this, but Larvae is music for post-industrial kids who like to smoke pot... and that's the best compliment I've given all day.
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