This is an irresistible package from the Portico Quartet, offering two albums in effect – a live set that catches the band on tour last year, and a set of remixes that serves to illustrate just how malleable their music is. The live album is definitely best heard in one go, and shows how strong and cohesive the band are. The style is elusive, so best perhaps just to call it ‘leftfield’ and say that fans of Four Tet and all things Warp and Ninja would definitely find something to tickle their fancy here. The band successfully stretch out their material, with ‘City of Glass’ providing some early energy and the excellent ‘Rubidium / Line’ teaming their specialist instrument, the oud (which sounds a bit like a steel pan), with mellow sax sounds and rushing hi hats to create a delicate but intense tension. The remix CD is fascinating, and SBTRKT takes the oud as the basis for his reinterpretation of ‘Line’, and LV makes City of Glass a much more aggressive break beat stomper. Meanwhile Luke Abbott’s integration of acoustic and electronic works to great effect on a simply brilliant take on ‘Rubidium’. All told, this is an outstanding and highly stimulating couple of hours’ music making.
5 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
