Album Review: Beardyman – Distractions
2 min read
For those of you who don’t know Beardyman, he’s something of a pioneer. Not only is he a beatbox champion, but also, through his use of looping tools he came to the forefront of a mixing style of music that created something different and unique. Not only that, but as he progressed, the machines and technology he used for his sound became more and more redundant to his needs; instead of getting disheartened he invented his own system, namely the Beardytron 5000 MKIII. And it’s with this system that Beardyman releases new album Distractions, but does it manage to live up to the hype?
A Cheerful and Sunny Disposition kicks off the record, and you can see why; the only way to describe the track is as an audio PowerPoint presentation of the Beardytron 5000 MKIII. It’s a good audition and sets up the album ahead giving us hints to his obsessive nature through the lyrics: ‘why don’t you break off a little piece of you…something I can get my teeth into. 2^25,000:1 Against And Falling is chill out electronica to a high standard, with a repetitive, addictive 90s vibe all brought home with clever stutters and glitches.
The thing that sets this album apart from others is not only the technical skills involved, but also how perfectly Beardyman manages to fit human feelings into the music – never before has emotion been felt so much throughout electronica. Before the Fall/Move On twists and turns with a funky beat that cuts and pastes its way to a moving climax, whereas A Perfect Waste of Time is Zero 7 style chillout at its best, and a bit of Prince thrown in or good measure.
The album may be an acquired taste for some, and track You only Like What You Know is perfectly titled for those that are unsure and need to open their mind. Being the most poppy track on the album, it’s a gentle ease into Beardyman’s world and if anyone needs convincing to listen, this track will do it.
Distractions is Beardyman’s best work to date, and a real showcase of the artists technical ability and skill. He’s managed to infiltrate the mainstream without them knowing, and before long I can see this man releasing more hardware to challenge the sound of music as we know it.
