Coldcut Sound Mirrors LP
It’s been 8 years since Coldcut graced us with an album, and in that time the godfathers have moved on from the cut and paste aesthetics that made them a household name the world over. Coldcut changed my world in many ways as I came out of my late teens and discovered their sound, so the prospect of a new offering was something I’ve been looking forward to with anticipation. And a shock is what I got. Whether or not it’s a good or bad one I’m still not entirely sure to be honest.
‘Sound Mirrors’ isn’t the Coldcut from the 90s, but then again would we want it to be? The songs, and make no mistake these are songs not beats and collages, are accomplished and cover a wide range in terms of influences and styles. But for some reason I can’t quite get into it for the most part. ‘Everything is Under Control’, the first single, sounds a bit too forced with its grinding guitars and lyrics about capitalism. The remixes were much more convincing for me. Elsewhere we’ve got Roots Manuva appearing on ‘True Skool’, an Indian influenced riddim with hectic, fast drums and raps, Soul Williams delivers more of his deep writings on ‘Mr Nichols’ a downtempo, surreal sounding, beatless track, ‘Walk a Mile’ features Robert Owens over a beat that mixes pop charisma with tinges of rave sounds and ‘Boogieman’ goes back to the sounds of ‘True Skool’, stripped down and more electronic in substance, with words from American poet Amiri Baraka. And so it goes on for most of the album, which features a slew of talented guests, and a whirling, at times dizzying change of styles, which personally I think is where it loses me.
It’s a definite leap from the Coldcut sound that everyone knows, and shows that the duo have definitely put down a lot of work and effort into compositions, sounds and arrangements which are light years from the more simplistic, and now classic, ‘Atomic Moog’ or ‘More Beats and Pieces’ for example. I have no doubt this will appeal to some people, but for me the jury is still out on ‘Sound Mirrors’.
It’s a definite leap from the Coldcut sound that everyone knows
- Kper
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