PinkTank

This might sound a bit strange, but the first thing I thought of when listneing to Huge Ep was Legend; you know, that ’80s movie starring Tom Cruise. Not to say this album is overflowing with unicorns and pixie dust like the film, but the music here reminded me of the soundtrack done by Tangerine Dream.
Although currently Tangerine Dream is taking a dive into the world of New Age (ugh), they used to be pioneers in ambient music and did some stunning soundtracks in their heyday. In a way, Fovea Hex (a collaborative band that fuses electronics, film compositions and ambiance) sounds like what the current Tangerine Dream should sound like. So pardon my strange comparison, but ask any Tangerine Dream fan and they could probably spot the similarities, too. But trust me, this is all a good thing.

Fovea Hex is a collaboration between Brian Eno, Roger Eno, Andrew McKenzie of Hafler Trio, composer Carter Burwell and a trio of talented singers. With so many heads crammed into this project it would be easy for an album like this to feel cluttered and eclectic, but Huge Ep is the opposite. Huge Ep manages to stay quiet, restrained and burrowing with subtle brilliance. It’s modern, but has an old ancient soul; it’s electronic, but also traditional folk.

“Huge (The Joy of Trouble)” is a trembling atmospheric opening that is accompanied by Clodagh Simonds’ striking voice. The song could easily be on the soundtrack for a nameless dramatic film. After the strings kick in on the second half, the song stops building and simply marinates for a while and dissolves into “A Song for Madga.” This is the shortest track, but the most pensive allowing electronics to swell and shrink beneath the gentle vocals. Last track “While You’re Away” is where my Tangerine Dream reference sprouted from. It reminds me of a moodier “Love By The Sun” and the vocals sound alike, too.

The ambient genre flourished in the ’80s, so it’s easy for modern ambient music to somehow awaken memories of older music. But Huge Ep is actually a forward stepping album, but is able to disguise itself from that. It’s quiet brilliance.

It’s what’s for dinner

Americans are fat.

Fat people are gross.

This about sums up Feed. Of course there are explorations of topics such as fetishes, the Internet and society’s take on beauty, but all that stuff is secondary because fat people are gross. Watch them eat. Gross.
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Siciliano never gets enough credit. Sure she’s mostly known for loaning her voice to Matthew Herbert’s music, but Siciliano is as talented a producer as she is a singer. When first popping in Slappers, many will roll their eyes at the amount of Herbert’s influence flowing from the tracks. True, there are slight traces of Herbert here, but then again, there are slight traces of Siciliano in Herbert. The two influence each other, so it’s logical for this to happen. But Slappers doesn’t sound like a Herbert album, which is probably what most are expecting.

Siciliano is dynamic, personality wise, and exerts herself on every track with cocky sassiness and humor. One of the most amazing “things” about Siciliano is how her voice transcends genre. Slappers mostly relies on electronics, but often wanders into country and hip hop territory. Siciliano’s voice never sounds out of place and is always reigning the track, barking out the lyrics often coyly or Peaches-esque.Opening track “Slappers” fittingly opens the album with a dynamic hip hop beat and then hops (pun intended) to “Didn’t Anybody Tell You,” a track that is fun to listen to, but easily forgettable. Stand out track “They Can Wait” is sinister and whisper-y one second and then assertive the next. Apparently all the beats on this track were taken from a recording of a high school and then fed through a drum kit. “Why Can’t I Make You High” borrows a country beat and a catchy hook, while “Frozen” is a quiet, throwback trip-hop track.

“Think Twice” is easily one of the best tracks, bursting into an array of bleeps and bloops and then shrinking back inside itself. “Wifey” is a glitch explosion that chops Siciliano’s vocals in interesting ways. Closer, “Be My Producer,” is an inside joke between Siciliano and Herbert. The track, which was entirely produced by her and uses only her voice to supply the beat, openly mocks the sexual relationship between singer and producer. Slappers is a surprisingly accessible album and could easily be a club hit if she was, ya know, Britney Spears. Although she might not get the credit, Siciliano’s talent is hard to brush over.