Amon Tobin - "Bloodstone EP"

Amon Tobin - "Bloodstone EP"
(Ninja Tune, 2007)

Amon Tobin is a legend in the British drum 'n' bass scene. The Rio de Janeiro native fuses jazz, samba, drum 'n' bass and intelligent ambience to form sonic walls of massive proportion. But Bloodstone EP, a wonderful preview of his upcoming album Foley Room, is among the best examples of what electronic music can do when pretension is shown the door. The title track opens with eerie violin and piano chords, dissonant wind instruments and a hint of cello that develops a foreboding mood in a way few who even score films are able to accomplish. As the song develops, strings are used to add to the haunting nature of the piece. Then comes a moment of near silence, as many instruments retract -- until two minutes in, when a wall of drums hits us like a brick to the gut, turning this into one of the most mind-wrenching, punch-to-the-brain pieces of electronic music I've ever heard. This is music which demands an audience, and Tobin has respect enough for his listeners to assume we’re not demanding mindless drum 'n' bass thumping to get us on a dance floor. Brilliant, simply brilliant. If "Bloodstone" and the other two songs on this EP, which build their samples from field recordings rather than from old records, are an example of what we can expect from Foley Room, it's going to blow away the best Tobin has offered to date. What a welcome way to open 2007.