Pole

VINYL FORMAT. This fourth proper full-length from Stefan Betke wisely abandons a sound that had been developed to its full extent, yet the outcome is a set of hip-hop/dub hybrids that stumble out of the speakers with a fatigued skank. The fact that this is Betke's work is somewhat traceable. All glitches and sediments have been scrubbed off; the beats are straightened out and made prominent; the odd bit of instrumentation that was once implied or misshapen beyond recognition now actually exists. The result is a spotless, dulled sterility that is prone to evoking Tortoise outtakes. Ohio-based rapper Fat Jon is present on a handful of the tracks; his voice only adds another monotonous component, but he was likely placed into a deep state of half-alertness by what he was given to work with. Aspiring producers should have less trouble adopting this sound; it's hardly inconceivable that some of the results will be of a greater wattage than what can be heard here.