Stop the Panic
Luke Vibert ofWagon Christfame teams here with session pedal-steel guitar player and electronic music collaborator BJ Cole for a mellow trip-hop and light drum & bass extravaganza. Closer in spirit to the minimalist leanings he's alluded to in early Wagon Christ incarnations, Vibert leans ever so slightly away from the dense experimentalism of fellow reclusive bedroom DJs such asAphex Twin's Richard James or Mike Paradinas (a.k.a.Mu-Ziq, who Vibert is often compared to). This record is cheeky, even silly at times, casually projecting a tossed-off energy that's entertaining as well as engrossing. Cole's guitar lends the record a lazy drawl, mixing sliding, countrified guitar riffs with Vibert's tuneful turntablist imagination. Still, the record has another gear to shift into, as typified by slippery, tempo-shifting tracks such as "Watery Glass Planet (Pt. 3)."--Matthew Cooke