Atropolis

This fantasia of percussion and electronics reanimates Colombian and pan-Latino sounds. This album resulted from Adam Partridge's travels in Colombia, digging into various rhythms then reconstructing them with all the trimmings of global bass. Breathy, dubbed-out vocals, wobbles in beats and bass, a spare but furious production style and just enough harshness in the sounds keep you on your toes. Despite the churn, these songs aren't easy to dance to and sometimes feel too skeletal, as with the incomplete patchwork of thumb piano samples from "Mbira Funk." A general lack of momentum afflicts many songs. On the other hand, there's an old school tribal feel to the album, like what Savage Republic or 23 Skidoo might be doing today if they were more tropically inclined. I'm more into straightforward tunes like "Che Bo" and the Brazilian lilt of "Bahia," which benefit from more melodic elements and a greater reliance on backbeat. Perhaps the aim is to keep folkloric instruments and faithful rhythms front and centre, which this does. However, this music works best as part of a continuous mix, instead of a series of individual songs.