Prefuse 73 - Surrounded By Silence
Unfortunately for Scott ‘Prefuse73’ Herren, although his latest opus Surrounded By Silence is released on Warp – one of my favourite labels and one that I usually could fill pages and pages of review space with information on – I approach this review with knowledge of his work being slim-to-none; rather than the detailed and free-flowing dissection that I could offer to accompany a release by say Autechre or Aphex Twin (other Warp artists), Surrounded By Silence falls into the rarely-seen category of albums that I have to read about and research despite having requested them deliberately.
The reason for this is that already existing reviews of previous material are no less than glowingly favourable towards the producer, and part of a vast chain of arrows pointing me in Prefuse’s direction. Hopefully a reaction along similar lines to my own is something I can encourage in readers of this review, and the reason for this, is that, quite simply, in Surrounded By Silence, Herren has created a rather stunning record.
Intended as ‘radio station of the mind of Scott Herren’ project – that is to say, a definitive document of artists he respects and loves – the album is put together in an manner so elegant that it sounds like a combination of Prefuse73 and a collection of intelligent and forward-thinking hip hop (think K-OS hip-hop, not Eminem hip-hop), put together by a variety of respectable and established artists in the field. It also flows in a radio-play list fashion, which, of course, helps the fluidity of the pieces as well as the imagery.
Among the collaborators here are Aesop Rock, Ghostface, Beans and The Books (if this isn’t impressive enough, the list of collaborators that didn’t make the final cut of the album includes Four Tet and Diplo), and although it is an obvious comment to make, each adds a wonderfully idiosyncratic ingredient into a recipe that is otherwise solely Herren’s – the makings of a meal fit for a king. The aforementioned The Books – the superlative cello, guitar, mandolin, banjo, plastic drain pipes and laptop-based duo from Massachusetts – add their sparkle to the absolutely heartbreaking ‘Pagina Dos’, which comes across like a collaboration between Four Tet, the Notwist and a more hip-hop driven Selected Ambient Works-era Aphex Twin. Likewise, the drifting, ethereal voices of Claudia and Alejandra Deheza on ‘Pastel Assassins’ make for some simultaneously evocative and booty-shakin’ (again, K-OS, not Eminem) offerings. ‘Sabbatical With Opinions’ (featuring Aesop Rock) moves like a Boards of Canada or cLOUDDEAD-type affair, all drifting synths and occasional rhythmic breaks cutting across the beats, while following track ‘Just The Thought’ (featuring Masta Killa and GZA) is a more driving matter, seizing beats and enthusing, poetic raps over dreamlike tunes.
Taking the opportunity to dig further into Herren’s respectable back catalogue would be suggestion worth heeding if, like my interest in this record, this is more-or-less a first introduction to the man. However, that said, I am convinced that Surrounded By Silence is a record that will please fans both old and new. Well done man.
