Send "Daedelus " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Bbc |
 Daedelus, aka Alfred Darlington, says of the title of this new collection, the Ninja Tune follow-up to 2008’s awesomely upbeat Love to Make Music To: "I not only intended it as a reflection of the LP itself, but also an outlook on life". Deep, dude. But one can put Darlington’s obsession with archaic fashion of the Victorian era to one side when assessing this 11-track set – as, just like previous long-players from the Los Angeles producer, it’s a future-nudging collection that complements the best of today with sounds coming to a chart near you around 2014. It is tailor-made, indeed, for today’s demand-more dance crowd, in a style that few artists are capable of.The most striking development is the employment of no fewer than seven guest vocalists, whose wildly different techniques should culminate in an end product that’s disjointed to the point of ridiculousness. While Darlington has welcomed singers into the studio in the past, he’s never skipped from Inara George to Bilal, via Baths, on the same LP. But any fears of disharmony from track to track are cast to the wind once the album has run its course for the very first time: this is sublime fare, and the vocalists are used on cuts that best fit their own approaches. So Baths – aka fellow LA resident Will Wiesenfeld – appears across the slippery FlyLo-echoing beats of French Cuffs, which manages to be urgent yet simultaneously chilled without space time imploding; and Bilal turns up on the wonderfully wobbly Overwhelmed, lending soulful tones to a track with eastern-tinged percussion which could be the work of Skream if he’d grown up in Chennai rather than Croydon. The instrumentals don’t suffer for the quality of the vocal work around them – while slighter of form, typically, they’re essential to the flow of an LP which does hold together surprisingly well as a full listen, despite its myriad constituents. Sew, Darn, Mend and Suit Yourself, clearly titled to fit the theme of the record, are shiny numbers which skitter and slide like the finest past work of this talented beat-crafter; the funky coda to the latter is one of the record’s many surprises, a teeny bonus treat within several already sumptuous offerings. In short, then: another fantastically enjoyable album from an artist whose modus operandi, above anything else, seems to be ensuring his audience is having the best possible time. Many a self-absorbed peer should take note....full text |
| Contactmusic |
| Daedelus's main point of attraction is also his main point of detraction; his unrestrained experimentation and excess, and refusal to stand still for a single second. His back catalogue consists of scores of albums, EPs and singles scattered across countless labels, none of which settle on a specific sound or place their feet firmly inside any particular genre. As a previous resident of Warp, Stones Throw and Brainfeeder amongst others a catch-all tag of 'electronica' is probably loosely suitable, but this does a great disservice to an artist who has done as much as any to shake off any stereotypes and avoid the usual journalistic cliches, and one who has, with latest release 'Bespoke', released his most consistent album to date. Of course, this consistency concerns the quality of the album and not the overall palette of sound. On 'Bespoke' Daedelus is as summary-defying as ever, but he hits the right spot much more than on the majority of his previous releases. 'Tailor-Made' and 'Penny Loafers' are irresistible slabs of future jazz built with old-school house vibes that have a cosy aura without coming close to the coffee table, whilst album centrepiece 'Suit Yourself' offers a re-imagination of the Ridge Racer Type 4 soundtrack in the mould of Jaga Jazzist or The Cinematic Orchestra, a triumphant if overly simple horn sample deconstructed and reconstructed and deconstructed again. The choice and variety of vocalists also adds a lot to the album. Long, and unjustly, forgotten Dr Dre collaborator Bilal's aching sighs are the eye to 'Overwhelmed's percussive maelstrom, repeating as Daedelus's beats and samples fracture outwards, whilst Inara George lulls add to the woozy, laid-back funk of the aforementioned 'Penny Loafers' without sending it to sleep....full text |
| Popmatters |
| California’s resident electro DJ/producer Alfred Darlington, known musically as Daedelus, does a great many things on his 2011 release Bespoke. Getting a lot done is one thing and is no easy feat. So where Bespoke might understandably be criticized in spots for lacking listener accessibility, it’s important to remember that the trade off for this is an album brimming with ideas. Plus, the quantity of what Daedelus packs into Bespoke is made more remarkable by the producer’s ability to do so much at once. Such elements as sounds, moods and vocal arrangements could have been worked out in a more orderly fashion, one after the other in some places or, in the extreme, isolated and revamped as foundations to entirely new compositions. That, no doubt, would have resulted in an easier listen, from the standpoint of instant recognition and resonance. Instead, Daedelus piles it on—sounds, movements, moods, vocals and all manner of odds and ends—into densely layered configurations that are at once thick and ambient. Additionally, this release employs live instrumentation in a way that adds a bit of warmth to the proceedings. The album title itself speaks to the artist’s musical approach, as the term “bespoke” signifies something custom-made, often in connection with clothing. That Daedelus is known for his preoccupation with Victorian era clothes worms its way into the make and feel of this release. Also, Daedelus has referred to the album title as an approach to life. Individual song titles suggest an album concept built around the custom fit, as songs called “Tailor Made”, “Sew, Darn, Mend”, “Penny Loafers”, “Suit Yourself” and “French Cuffs” amble and rumble across Bepoke‘s 10 full selections, which omits the 41 minute outro “Nightcap”. The question for the listener, though, is not whether the album’s concept, or even its execution, exudes the custom fit and design connoted by the title. No, the real question is: Who is the target audience for this design? Is the music custom fit for the listener or the artist himself? As much as we might be tempted to answer, “For both”, the results seem tailored to Daedelus’s indulgences and idiosyncrasies. What we find is an album of immense and varied textures. Seven of Bespoke‘s 11 tracks include guest vocals, but even those vocals operate as much for mood and atmosphere as for lyrical content. The guests include Milosh’s soothing charm; Inara George of The Bird & the Bee; a surprisingly satisfying emcee-turned-vocalist move from Busdriver; Bilal, offering his striking blend of soul, jazz and R&B; smooth and soul-laden chanteuse, Kelela Mizanekristos; and Will Wiesenfeld, the producer/songwriter known as Baths. In many ways, these first-rate vocal performances become instruments themselves in Bespoke‘s compositions, with the arrangements, samples and overdubs layering vocals upon vocals, intertwining foreground with background. Yet, the vocals seem never to mesh completely with the music, which is shaped and bent with frenetic percussion and whirlpools of synthesizer. We’ll find plenty of noise, distortion and effects to fill any lingering hopes of remaining negative space. The songs don’t feel cluttered, but they do sound busy, unrelenting and full. Above the buzzing and clattering backdrops sit the vocals, often alluding to jazz balladry, Technicolor musicals and swing. It’s possible that the flaw here is not the striking contrast between classic vocal styling and electronic—actually, that’s part of the intrigue. Rather, the flaw might reside in the overuse of percussion, with the off-kilter rhythms undermining established song structure and otherwise catchy grooves....full text |
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