Warp/Nothing, 1999
Yeah, the new Squarepusher EP is good, but don’t expect a drum and bass record; expect more jazz fusion. Maximum Priest is Tom Jenkinson’s latest experiment in electronics and improvisation, with a single melodic track thrown in for good measure. There’s a more frantic tone here than in previous Squarepusher releases, with strange voices and a sequence that sounds like a mugging in a jazz lounge. The remixes are a bit disappointing, though, and the tracks are so diverse that listening to this disc straight through is a bit harrowing. This EP’s best sampled in small doses, but it’s satisfying like a good video installation—bits of the unfamiliar mix with the familiar in an eerie collage.