4 out of 5

Label: Rephlex

Produced by: Ed DMX

The Bleep website gives us some marketing jam regarding DMX Krew’s quantum mechanics explorations in the Wave Function series, specifically in relation to volume 5: the “Transactional Interpretation of (quantum mechanics) … – a transaction between the future and the past.”  And this is one of those rare instances where I could’ve sussed out a variation on that theme without being prepped with it, as the LPs A-side and B-side each have their own distinct flavor, perhaps guided by the tone of the ‘vocal’ tracks that leads either one.

On the A-side, we have history lesson ‘William The Conqueror’ (somewhat reminding of the sing-song of Cylob’s ‘What Shall We Do With a Drunken Sailor?‘), backed up by the organic, night-time funk of ‘Brain Location Service,’ the grimey ‘Clock Works,’ what I feel is a more classic, old-school DMX Krew sound with ‘Quantum Logic,’ and the concluding ‘Dydramol Theme‘ – all support a more analog “past” vibe, redolent of Ed DMX’s wide selection of classic synths and sounds.  Even the titles could be said to reflect this, bearing out references to our fleshy brains, gear-based clock, and a painkiller, while also matching those concepts with elements of control.

Control which then takes shape on the B-side, littered with science references a la Heisenberg and Feynman, and kicking off with Echelon’s robo-voice telling us about the status of our being monitored and automated.  While this all still sounds like DMX’s preference for Earthy sounds, the beats here are tighter and a bit quicker, giving the impression of something slightly more ordered…

Setting all that nonsense analysis aside, though, Volume 5 is a really fantastic set, only limited by a couple of off-beats (though maybe my vinyl is wonky) which seem purposeful but just kinda break the vibe, and some tracks on either side end without much consequence.  However, in a wild world where DMX Krew issues good to great tracks between singles and albums literally like every other month, being able to land on a 9-track release where every song is at the higher end of that range makes it certainly worth picking up.