It’s easy to take Plaid for granted. Andy Turner and Ed Handley have been making albums under the moniker for 25 years or so now, and it’s fair to say there is not a bad one among them. ‘The Digging Remedy’, their ninth, is full of what has made them special in that time – carefully constructed but with unusual harmonies and rhythms, and an ever so slight leaning towards folk music in the nature of their tunes. Here they employ clever and effective syncopation in ‘Baby Step Giant Step’, while ‘Clock’ and ‘Melifer’ show off their poised, graceful way with electronics. ‘Clock’ is especially good in the sense it gives of a timepiece being wound up and slowed down during the track, a really clever piece of picture painting, while ‘Wen’ dispenses with beats altogether to close out the album. With a touch of whimsy and creating some breezy moods, ‘The Digging Remedy’ shows Plaid to be just as fresh with their music as they were a quarter of a decade ago. They are one of Warp’s long-term treasures, that’s for sure.
4 out of 5
Reviewed by: Ben Hogwood
