Daedelus makes very unusual music, and that made him a really distinctive asset to the Ninja Tune roster, so it’s a bit of a surprise to discover that he’s moved elsewhere. His quality hasn’t dipped at all though, and if anything he is now more emotionally involved. ‘Drown Out’ is a musical response to two deaths in the family, so it has a bit of a dark side, but it’s ultimately a record that finds strength in adversity, while still managing to sound like nobody else. A track like ‘Tiptoes’ is a great example, its vocal like a cross between the Chi-Lites and a church choir, set over a loping beat that promises some off kilter funk. It sounds a lot better than it reads, I can promise you! ‘Frisson’ has some helter-skelter beats, while ‘Abandon’ is really sonorous but with some quite raucous moments, while the opener ‘Flat Faded’ is rich and full bodied. ‘-Ísimo’, meanwhile, shows he still has a hyperactive mind, while the final ‘Eureka’ is more studied and reflective. Daedelus puts a lot of soul into his music, but he twists it into a perspective that is quite exotic and more than a bit weird but still really listenable. He’s done it again here.
5 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
