RFBX: ‘It’s Genius, I Swear’ Special – JD Samson of MEN/Le Tigre on Tussle’s ‘Kling Klang’
By: JD Samson
I first heard this incredible band when they opened for Erase Errata at the old Knitting Factory in New York City in the early 2000's. One of my favorite things about the project is that they have no vocals and two drummers that play at the same time, but not the same patterns. That's one of my all time favorite effects ever. Tussle is a deeply spacious band with groovy disco drums. The funky bass lines drive the songs like a really heavy race-car and the effected synths and interstitial percussion whistle perfectly around the skeletons of the tracks. I love this record because it is simple, monotonously aerated, and still one of the truest dance records i know.
You can listen to this record while you are making dinner or you can listen to this record while you are dancing at a club. When this record came out, i was really into playing the song 'tight jeans' at the beginning of my dj sets. i find this track, and this band in general, sits in the same genre pile as esg and liquid liquid. As time has gone on, since the record came out in 2004, i have listened to the record as much, if not more than i did when it came out. As someone that listens to music for my job, i find it to be a record that doesn't interrupt my energy field, but a record that promotes my energy field to grow and to relax which is increasingly rare. The band toured briefly with hot chip as the opening band and played an amazing set at Webster Hall with special guests... liquid liquid. it was a dream come true for me as a fan of both bands. The record is real. The record is a collection of grooves and bass-lines and beautiful textures that are strongly humble and built from a realness that inspire me as a musician and an artist. in less than 45 minutes you will close your eyes and find another world where you can suddenly move easier, think easier, and understand what music was meant to be.
JD Samson is a member of Le Tigre, and more recently, MEN, a new project who release their debut EP Credit Card Babie$ through Trouble Records on the 6th of September. Watch a video for it below.
Artists in this article: MEN, Le Tigre, Tussle