Christ only knows what's going on at Warp these days.. The warning signs have been there for a fair while (moving to London, a raft of dubious releases, that pooey ribbon logo) but in the last few months it's become reasonably clear that they've donned their leathers, mounted their motorcycle and fully jumped the shark. The Lonelady album got ripped off the stereo halfway through the other day because none of us could actually bear it and now the abysmally named Babe Rainbow is taking us right back to the darkest days of dubstep wobble circa 2008 with his Shaved EP.. Even if the two culprit tracks here are meant to be jokes they don't particularly work on that level since I don't think anyone can cope with hearing that kind of farty bass and tired arpeggiating in this day and age, in jest or not. Elsewhere there are relatively decent yet unmemorable takes on the dark, moody and slightly industrial side of things that may just show the hints of some sort of potential. It's sad to see what was once such a cutting edge label trying to play catch-up so inelegantly but hopefully the new Autechre LP will help paper over the cracks.
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What their label says...
Babe Rainbow’s gothic futurist take on bass music is set to divert quite a few sets of ears from the scene’s core in London. The Vancouver-based artist has been developing his own special blend of dark atmospherics and disembodied beats that will feature on his debut ‘Shaved EP’. With recent high-profile remixes for Midnight Juggernauts and Comanechi, as well as an genre-spanning mixtape in the works, 2010 should hold much more for Babe Rainbow.
Previously known for his remixing work on Wavves and You Say Party! We Say Die!, and his organisation of Vancouver’s biggest independent arts festival, Babe Rainbow carves a name for himself with this dark, addictive debut EP.
Other items by Babe Rainbow
Endless Path EP Babe Rainbow 12" (vinyl), £7.39 Sorry - sold out.
