A GUY CALLED GERALD / TO ALL THINGS WHAT THEY NEED

Label : Studio K7 / Cat No. : K7173CD
Format : Original CD / Released : 31st January, 2005
Style : Electronica

In these modern times, where a large proportion of the music released is as disposable as the mp3 file format it comes in and where the advanced intricacies of modern music production is used to cover up a lack of real invention and soul, its back to one of electronic music's pioneers to show us how it can be done. Gerald Simpson's timely follow-up to 'Essence' comes in the wake of the recent release 808 State's 'Pre-build' and re-release of 'Newbuild'. Gerald submerges the listener straight away into his headspace with the mechanical ambience of 'American Cars' before the ethereal vocals of Ayn are merged into the tribal drums of 'To Love'. Millennium Sanheridrin features Ursula Rucker's sublime vocals and poetry, the subtle production emphasising Gerald's jazz roots. Margaret Thatcher ironic proclamations draw us into 'Call for a Prayer' with its middle-eastern riffs and urgent drums. The prayer is indecipherable but the music is infused with a political stance that requires no posturing. Immediately it's apparent that the highly polished breaks of Gerald's last album have been replaced by the urban grit and inner city paranoia that infused his proto-jungle masterpiece 'Black Street Technology'. However, Gerald switches with ease from tribal rhythms that characterise the first couple of tracks to a sound more rooted in Kraftwerk on the Authechre-driven electronic funk of 'Meaning'. 'To all things what they need' showcases a huge range musical styles from break-beats to house and electro, suggesting a new found sense of freedom in Gerald style and all the better we are for it. My favourite two tracks are 'First Try' and 'What God is'. On 'First Try', Gerald returns to the Detroit-inspired machine music of his 'Voodoo Ray' and 'Pacific State' days. Rising pads, floating acid lines and a dubby bass line combining together in a track infused with the untainted soul of acid house and enough to bring a tear to the eye of any cynic. The closing track, 'What God Is', features a malfunctioning robot making its final proclamations to humans as the world around descends into chaos, driving break beats reminding us of the urgency of our fate. This is confirmation that Gerald is back to doing what he does best. Soaking up the political confusion and paranoia of the post-9/11 world and fusing it with primal rhythms, in the process, reminding us that electronic music can do much more than just make you groove. And with news of a timely update of the classic 'Voodoo Ray' in the pipeline, Gerald's musical legacy continues to grow in 2005.(Maxxrelax)