Available on: Innovative Leisure LP
Ceremony plays out like an eclectic set from a master DJ, someone who revels in the excitement generated by unpredictability. It swings wildly from hazy psychedelia to blustering hip-hop through to majestic torch songs and some mind-warping midrange wobble, on one occasion all in the same song (‘Death and Rebirth’). It’s an intoxicating concoction of sound which shouldn’t all work together but winds up being addictive in its strangeness.
It begins with ‘Opening Incantation’, which would recall one of those extra long Orbital-style live intros if it wasn’t narrated by shamanic spoken word. Its gentle foreboding sounds as if it is preparing us for something, and on ‘Jaguar’, we get it. If you thought the ’80s were the last time you would hear jungle cat roars in electronic music, you were dead wrong, as the titular animal strikes out over effected synth bass and a clanking rhythm. Sasha Perera sings the majestic torch song I referenced above on ‘Restart’ and it sounds as if Mo’Wax was riding again, although bigger and more synthetic. Closing out this first run of four tracks, ‘Fields’ ups the BPM into more brisk territory, with a swampy bassline that almost talks. Despite the fact these four songs cover different tempos, styles and sounds, highlighting the manic diversity that’s such a big part of Ceremony, they’re held together by a distinct Latin groove. Overall, it’s exactly what you’d expect from this self-styled bass luchadore from San Antonio.
Ceremony‘s obvious stand-out track is Freddie Gibbs collaboration ‘Highway to Hell’, which spread like wildfire through the Internet earlier this year in the form of an alternative, Bun B-laden version. Veering sharply from the – mostly instrumental – material that precedes it, it’s undiluted bravado on a bed of minor keys and hand drums. When Gibbs proclaims “I’m a no good sinner”, the ritualistic backing makes good on that thought, beaming nefarious intent right into your ears. On the other side of the coin, the Chico Mann-featuring ‘Me Gusto’ should be soundtracking countless barbeques this Summer, with a more traditional rhythm backed by a winding bass synth.
Ceremony has been slowly working its way up to its closing section, and ultimately the most memorable part of the album. ‘Dame Lo”s menacing shakers and wobble bassline provide a jump off point for ‘Death and Rebirth’ to take a step back in time with hectic breakbeats, clattering kettle drums and deep, rumbling low-end. It’s like the scary journey back from the centre of hallucinogenic experience, before, finally, ‘El Moreno”s daybreak of arpeggied synths mark the end of the tunnel. Being Mexicans with Guns, the album closer’s still relentless in rhythm, but it’s a comforting end to the journey he’s taken you on. Ceremony is an album that commands attention, and should get it. Don’t fuck with it.
Keith Pishnery
