Burial & Four Tet: Moth/Wolf Cub

Text Records 2009. TEXT006

Discogs

Perhaps the most hyped release of 2009, at least in the world I inhabit, was this 12″, a collaboration between what I think have been the most exciting musicians in the electronic field in recent years.  A stupidly limited pressing (I was lucky to get a copy) and black labels and covers all added to the mystique.  The only information supplied is what’s etched into the runout grooves.

For once the music lived up to the hype.  Moth is the better of the two tracks and sounds like nothing  either have produced before.  It’s very laid back, very eerie sounding with manipulated vocals wandering in and out.   Wolf Cub sounds more like you’d expect, to the extent that it’s possible it’s simply an amalgam of material worked on prior to this collaboration.  Whatever, it works really well, and is only overshadowed because it’s paired with the remarkable Moth.

Unfortunately it’s a very noisy pressing.  I’ve put it through my record cleaning machine twice, but to no avail.  Normally I’d have sent it straight back, but since there was no chance of getting another copy, I decided to live with it.

Further listening?  Well Burial’s first, self-titled album is essential, and Four Tet’s new 0181 is working well for me, that is if you can find a copy.  Both are so consistent though, that it’s worth buying anything you see, especially the very limited Text 12″ singles.