Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on May 2010

Accidental/Hostess

English sampling guru Matthew Herbert is no stranger to using unusual source material: he’s previously sampled a big band, the human body and even a McDonald’s wrapper (to critique consumerism). One One—the first part of a trilogy to include One Pig (composed of sounds from a hog) and One Club (sampled crowd noise from a club)—is strictly a solo album, in which Herbert flexes his considerable abilities on synthesizers and, for the first time, sings. Against a canvas of mostly dreamy, shimmering sonics, he paints intimate portraits of his hopes, fears and fantasies. The exceptions are the single “Leipzig,” a down-and-dirty rump-shaker with a clubland theme, and “Dublin,” with its funky Afrobeat guitar line—who knew Ireland was so bumpin’? Herbert joins Shugo Tokumaru on the Taico Club bill (see Shugo Tokumaru), which is rapidly shaping up to be a dream line-up for fans of geeky music.