Funkstorung

German duo Funkstorung return from a ten-year break following their 2005 album The Return to the Acid Planet with their fourth album, arriving like a twisted Janus-head on a perfectly toned body. It's everything you've expected from glitch-hop's inventors and everything you have not. For those eagerly waiting for Funkstorung to deliver a new electronic innovation, like they did with their first record: this time they did not. Instead they do what they do best and take up the path they started to carve with Disconnected in 2004: luscious pop songs with heavy backbones and illustrious guests adding heartfelt vocals to a bed of fizzing basslines. It is a very vocal album, with guest singers on nearly every song, but they don't dominate the sound; they simply contribute to a fresh Funkstorung that has ripened a bit and been seasoned with a hell of a lot of flavor. Some of the voices on Funkstorung have been part of the family for a while; some of them, like Jamie Lidell, are new collaborators. But whether with old friends or newfound partners, each track on the album gets to the heart of electronic pop. As a whole, Funkstorung seems so well-balanced it's ready to be an instant classic. It's sunny vibes would go as well with a fine wine in front of a fireplace as with a plastic cup of beer and rubber boots at a muddy festival. Instead of concentrating on glitches and breaks, the two producers have put their effort into nurturing every sound to perfection; one can feel that nothing has been rushed, and each detail is in the right place. As Funkstorung put it, the album is about evolution not revolution. Highlights include Laid Out, featuring Anothr with a hook so big even your granny you won't get it out of her head for a week; and So Simple, the collaborative effort with Lidell, whose smooth soul-crooning fits the chrome-glistening hip-hop beat like a velvet glove. The album also features contributions from Audego, Taprikk Sweezee, ADI, and Jay-Jay Johanson. Funkstorung comes in a beautiful sleeve designed by lauded graphic artists Zeitguised and Sebastian Onufszak.