I wasn’t expecting Super Roots 10 to sound like this, which is what I have come to expect from the Boredoms and the Super Roots series. Super Roots 10 contains “Ant 10” and three remixes of it, and lives up to the impressive legacy Super Roots lays down. “Ant 10” itself continues the Boredoms’ recent love of tribal druming. Beginning with chanting, it then moves into a massive wall of tribalisms. Floating on top of this are silky synth arpeggios and psychedelic guitars, all of which create an intense trancey wall sound. Its very psychedelic in a very Japanese way. The synths have been compared to early Nintendo games. There is certainly that. Its a glorious analogue bubble bath of Japanese pentatonic.
The remixes follow in a similar trance-like vein and are pretty dance floor friendly. Japanese artist Altz provides two remixes. His first is pretty faithful to the original but emphasises the four to the floor beat, which is actually present in the original, just overwhelmed by the tribal drums. His second mix is a blend of synths chants and tribalisms. Norwegian producer Lindstrøm, who has recently released his critically-acclaimed album Where You Go I Go Too, adds some serious funk to the EP. His mix begins in a soup of psychedelic jam and electronica before heading towards some funky synth driven house. Like the 80s condensed into espresso form.
Superb, that’s the one thing I have to come expect from the Super Roots series.
-Alaric-
