ATM

VINYL FORMAT. "Ass to Mouth" b/w "Colour Wheel." On ATM Busdriver's baritone goes from a half spoken croon to a blaring holler as he vilifies himself as a failure and narcissist while decrying the demands of a fictitious fickle audience. The production, courtesy of new beat producer talent Loden, is both abrasive and nebulous. Layered synth lines weave in between throbbing drum programming and stacks of fluctuating vocals giving the loopy chorus a strange synergy that should be reserved for sci-fi films. "Colour Wheel", on the other hand, wields darker hues from a similar palette. It plays out like some post-apocalyptic love ballad retrieved from a dying computer. Digital sheen highlights the subtleties in the sung sentiment while ascending synth arpeggios run frantic. Busdriver is venturing beyond his comfort zone and the world is a better place for it.