| BUS - Morebusinesslinkyouthere (Sub 2005)By Joseph |
Bus
Morebusinesslinkyouthere
Sub
2005
Tracklist
1. Disco Suns
2. Take a Walk With Me
3. Outta Their Loco Vulcan Heads
4. Plastico
5. Bambi and Thumper
6. Bus L'Ouverture
7. Return of the Fist
8. Attitude Jets
9. Depth Charger
Gus Till, who was a member of the infamous band Slinky Wizard who released a string of amazing tracks from 1994 - 2001 but who never brought out a full length album. Of all the members Adam Boyd, Dominic Lamb, George Barker, Gus Till, Ronnie Biggs, Simon Posford, James Monro, Dick Trevor, Matt Evans, and Jules Evans, I'd haveto say Gus Till was my favourite. The subtlety he manages to squeeze into music is fantastic. His music has not always been something I can listen to at anytime as when I give it casual listens I miss most of what he's done. But given time (& headphones) his music paints the most fabulous soundscapes I've ever heard (Notice that Simon Posford's name was also included above  )
So Bus's first album is definitely Gus's work. There is a lot of variation in this ranging from what I was expecting to very easily accessible stuff. Let's check it out.
1. Disco Suns
A really dreamy intro sets me in a spring mood right from the get go. It takes a few minutes for the beat to kick in but when it does we are treated to a hard kicking beat that manages to be subtle enough to not dominate proceedings. As usual from Gus Till there is a lot of psychedelic sounds used all around but there is also hints of melody that I never really heard in his previous (Bus) work. Smooth as silk is how I'd describe this track. Not sure about the disco feel hinted by the title but the melody really reminds me of Suns 
2. Take A Walk With Me
A little more energy here. The pace seems to have quickened. After the opening sample It's a whole different way of life, it's a whole different way of living, but more than that it's a whole different of thinking… some radio-ish voices merge in & the beat kicks off. More than that though is all the sounds used & the way the sample is twisted really add to the energy. The beat kicks & trips and there is so many "Gus" sounds all over the background. Lots of subtle synth works with a few hints of melody here & there. Very nice track.
3. Outta There Loco Vulcan Heads
On the surface this is a more minimal track with no melodies 6 seemingly less sounds but focus on it & it's rather more subtle flavours & there is a lot more than on first inspection. Dark ambient sounds rush through the background & there is an interestingly slow bassline. All in all this is like how Brian Eno described ambient, it is as ignorable as it is engaging.
4. Plastice
The intro is a collection of twisted vocal samples, looks they are sped up rewound & turned inside out. A heavy kick comes in and some dull metallic synth sounds. These blend into what in my mind sounds like some dark twisted creature's attempt at civilised communication but fucking it all up. The female vocal sample is really weird & it repeats along with some melodic bleeps & other weird sounds in a kind of rhythmical way. The twisted troll sounds come back & overall I get quite a dark feeling from this track.
5. Bambi & Thumper
A much funkier track here, I can hear this being played on dancefloors in cheesy clubs everywhere & the e'd up kiddie dancers not noticing anything different. Don't get me wrong, it's not a cheesy track. There are a lot of cheesy elements in it but we are dealing with Gus Till here. The man is a master & he easily has the skills to make a track that's easily accessible to people outside the scene but deep, engaging & psychedelic enough to appeal to fans of his too. Great track! Really funky & the poppish female vocals are ethereal (enough) to not ruin it but add a sexy feel.
6. Bus L'Overture
(Gus Till Conducts the Concrete Unlimited Orchestra)
As you can imagine from the track title & note this is an orchestral track. Gus Till actually conducting the CUO & mixing it with his progressive stylings. Quite an interesting fusion of sounds. The classical string instruments mix surprisingly well with the trance beat & there is even quite military sounding beats in there. The samples & electronic bits add a surreal atmosphere to the track leaving my jaw hanging open. Love this track 
7. Return of the Fist
Lots of effects in this one, they remind me of the Pioneer CDJ effects like Phaser & Flanger. All very sci-fi & incredibly weird (in a good way). Much more maximal in your face Bus than anything I've heard previously under this name. A mad crazy mess of sounds all over the place. Think of the Slinky Wizard tracks Fist Full of Mutants & Sacred Fist on Black Rhino & you'll get where the track title came from. Very much in that style, dark crazy stuff
8. Attitude Jets
Lots of Jet type sounds from the opening sound of the rotor engine starting up to the whooshes throughout. Once again this reminds me more of Bus's older work. On the surface there seems to be not much to it, but dive deeper into the music & you'll find that there is a hell of a lot going on. He merges the sounds together nicely with the beat sounding like it's walking through a swamp at high speed & the acidic stabs coming out of the night sky as the beat runs off. The bass, the acid, the beats, groans & engine sounds all create a little world for you to explore. I imagine I'm outside at night in a forest clearing, planes rush over head & back again as if searching for something, occasionally coming closer & then rushing off again. Great track, needs focus or you'll miss it.
9. Depth Charger
This is a Bus remix of a Slinky Wizard track. I've never heard the original so I can not compare it. This is a nice little journey though. Some melodic sounds, some darker sounds mixed in. A nice beat that makes me want to move a little bit but not too much. There are vocal samples expertly inserted so as not to distract your attention but more divert it slightly into another direction. There is funkiness, ambience, rhythm darkness all in one tight little package. A really nice track to round off the album, the long drawn out ambient synths in the background make me just want to fly away.
A great album the by Gus Till, he's managed to make a progressive album that is interesting, varied & very very good. I'm not usually a big fan of prog but there is definitely something about this album that makes it stand out from the crowd of identikit prog by numbers that has been released over the years. Each track is definitely Gus Till but each one is different enough to make it a really interesting album. All tracks are between good & fantastic.
I don't think this album has had the recognition it deserves but comes with my full recommendation. |
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October 2007
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