A fun album that holds a variety of sounds and lots of energy, "Wildstyle" does not disappoint whether you are a seasoned "bass head" or new to the genre.
"Wildstyle" produced by the self-run label Amorphous Music features a diverse array of genres in its seven new songs, from upbeat hip-hop to softer ambient/roots music.
Bassnectar (whose given name is Lorin Ashton) brings an eclecticism to the album that reflects the broad taste in music, giving his songs unique and individual sounds that enthusiasts can identify with pleasure.
The title song, "Wildstyle Method," is the gem of the album. Featuring 40Love a rising San Francisco-based group that combines hip-hop, electronica and soul the song takes little time to plunge the listener head-first into the heavy bass beats that Bassnectar is known for.
Building from the start of the song with a playful voice repeating the line, "Tikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo," from the children's book "Tikki Tikki Tembo" by Arlene Mosel, Bassnectar maintains this air of childish fun and games throughout the first drop and the rest of the song.
This silly head-banger is especially representative of Bassnectar's fun performance personality, as he reacts most enthusiastically to an audience that is clearly having the time of their lives. According to a post Ashton made on his blog, "i LOVE enthusiasm, i LOVE a frenzy, i LOVE melting down with people."
"The 808 Track" featuring the Atlanta-based Mighty High Coup, consisting of Mr. SOS, Ricky Raw and A-Bomb, is another hip-hop track with an anthem feel that is amplified by the heavy bass frequencies known in dubstep as "womp."
The catchiness of this particular song makes it very difficult to avoid hitting your head on the pong table when you hear this for the first time in a fraternity basement.
In contrast with "Wildstyle Method" and "The 808 Track," the album's third track "Falling," featuring Paper Machete, has vocals that sound a bit like Thom Yorke and a heavy wobbling bass line that hypnotizes and dizzies the most far-out of listeners. Bassnectar expertly allows for softer reflective guitar moments on this track especially at the beginning and end creating an auditory journey that, played on repeat, will definitely put listeners in a trance.
After you recover from "Falling," listen to the ethereal "Underwater," featuring Tina Malia. This ambient singer's voice soars, meshing beautifully with Bassnectar's slower, but still heavy, womps and downbeats.
The soul of this track compared to the earlier upbeat songs on the album gives it more of a slow house feel, but with Bassnectar's own particular twist on each and every drop.
The rest of the album expands on the entrancing energy of these four tracks, and there is no reason you should not buy or download it. Better yet, go see one of Bassnectar's Fall Tour shows, which kicked off on Sept. 14 in Florida.
This month also marked the debut of the "1st BassFest" in Broomfield, Colo. an event coordinated by the Bassnectar team. The concert took place on Saturday, and Ashton has since written on his Twitter, "Still trying 2 wipe my face off the floor." This bodes well for students planning to attend the November concert in New York City the final and only remaining Northeast stop on the tour.
"Wildstyle" is the focus of the tour, yet Ashton has also been playing a remix of metal/rock group Deftones' "Prince."
"It was going to be on the Wildstyle EP, but since it has such a different sound from all the other songs, we decided to just give it away into the universe and let it ricochet off whatever it collides with," Lorin wrote on his blog.
