Brian Eno is MORE DARK THAN SHARK

INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS & RELATED ARTICLES

Clash JULY 31, 2014 - by Gareth James

ENO/HYDE: HIGH LIFE

Collaborative set's spontaneity is its greatest strength...

Having delivered the emphatically melodic Someday World in May, Brian Eno and (Underworld's) Karl Hyde's second, rapidly crafted collaborative record for Warp arrives with almost suspicious haste.

But rather than offering more of the slightly saccharine same, this is a bold and rather unexpected set. Comparisons with Eno and David Byrne's My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts are inevitable, with a strong African influence evident across these songs - something the album's title almost certainly alludes to.

DBF is a glitchy freak-out, like a Fela Kuti track fed through a Fisher Price tape player, while closer Cells & Bells is a spaciously hypnotic piece, built around luscious drones and a glorious robotic vocal.

While not entirely successful, this set's spontaneity is its greatest strength.