Pole - '90/90' (Mute)
4/5
By: Thomas Hannan
Slowly, the pieces are starting to fit. Whereas the first EP in this series, '45/45' was a confusingly cold and challenging work, '90/90' turns the tables somewhat, and sees Pole (aka Stefan Betke) take notable steps back towards civilization. For the first time ever on one of his recordings, we get the sound of a person's voice. There are even the tones of real instruments being played by bona fide human beings too, but just when it appears to be sliding into convention, the bizarre subject-matter hits you. Pole hasn't gone ordinary on us yet.
Lead-track 'Slow Motion' is essentially a hip-hop version of Stephen Hawking's 'A Brief History of Time' over some minimal dub-meandering. Rapper Fat Jon eerily picks away at the framework of the seconds passing in a way that hardly strikes you as sociable, but unlike '45/45' which suffered in places from being a touch too robotic, the icy feel to this work is intensely personal almost to the point of fear. The result is stunning; a perfect exercise in screwing with other people's genres, a game Pole is learning to play rather effectively. The following 'I Can't Hear' is listed as a ska version, but is unlike any ska you'll ever hear; for a start, it's on the beat, and owes a lot more to the likes of Four Tet than The Specials. Nothing here is as it seems.
The remainder of the EP is taken up with 'Slow Motion' in both its instrumental and a capella disguises. Whilst it's tempting to use this to mess around and create bootlegs of The White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army', that'd be betraying Mr Betke's intentions somewhat. They're included to show the pieces of the puzzle, and whilst not entirely necessary, they do help you understand the confusing final picture that bit more. Pole's world is not an inviting place, but '90/90' suggests that with some persistence, it can be an entirely fascinating one.
Artists in this article: Pole
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