I'd partly like to agree with Ralph Hobauer in Swiss-based 78s magazine who names Fat Freddy's second long player a "dissappointment on a high level". What he tries to say is that although Fat Freddy seem to be incapable of releasing bad music, they can do better, as shown on their first album "Based On A True Story".
But as it is (almost) always the case with bands and their first albums compared to their second, third or fourth: it gets worse. Remember The Prodigy, once been the pride of UK Breakbeats, and their intitial release "Experience". Following on, "Music For The Jilted Generation" had a couple of highlights, but everything that came after was simply a poor imitation of their earlier masterpieces. Or take Jamiroquai for example. "Emergency On Planet Earth" is the hell of an album, one of my all-time favourites still. But "Return Of The Space Cowboy", their second LP, is substantially less interesting. Forget that cosmic virtuality which followed...
There a so many more examples for this phenomena like The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Matthew Herbert, Erykah Badu, Phoenix, Joe Cocker, Goldie, The Streets or Portishead...just to name a few. So Fat Freddy's still is in good company. But for me, as a huge fan of their music and especially their live show, it's kinda difficult to swallow. I did have expected more. Or maybe I should say: other.
But let's take one thing at a time.
"Dr Boondigga..." starts with a tune that bears witness to the Sonar Kollektiv influence the band had over the last four years. "Big BW" features synths, a modern R'n'Bish-kinda beat and mellow horns. It can easily be placed in the chill-out shelf of your local media store (washing machines, toasters and CDs). It's hardly any special. "Shiverman", the second track, then links to Fat Freddy's dub heritage. And that's what they are best at. However, compared to their former tracks, it has a clear concentration on the dancefloor. I wouldn't call that a disadvantage, but I'm missing the deepness I'm used to from "Ernie" or "Flashback". Only after min 7:08 the tune gains full force, thanks to these incredible horns FFD are famous for. "Boondigga" is the next party-tune. This time with a dose of Pop music which provides the song with a good-time feeling. To my ears it just sounds a bit too cheesy.
Now come the good news:
"The Raft", track number 4 on "Dr Boondigga..." pushes us right back to the pure dub days of FFD. The tune is a killer. Horns, drums, echoes and Joe Dukie's splendid voice perfectly complement each other. That's what I was waiting for.
"Pull The Catch" heavily reminds me of Nightmares On Waxes "In A Space Outta Sound", which in fact confounds my statement that second or third releases almost never touch the quality of the preceding. In my opinion, NOW's 5th album is his best. "Pull The Catch" consists of a bouncing Hip-Hop beat, a massive electronic bassline and synth and beautiful horns. The break section around min 2:15 is one of FFD's finest and rounds the track up to being my personal favourite on the album.
"The Camel" starts with bass and a distorted guitar, another novelty in the band's style. But that bit of Rock suits them pretty well and is enhanced at min 3:20 when UK's female number one Soul voice Alice Russell drops in. I especially like the Herbie Hancock kinda synths with which the song concludes.
"The Nod" unfortunately doesn't turn the corner from bad to good. Besides the annoying lyrics "I'm cooking in the kitchen tonight...", the Hip-Hop MC feature makes bad things worse. Next!
"Wild Wind" starts with a Dub Techno beat and once again adresses the dancefloor. It somewhat uses a similar receipe like track 2 and 3, but this time FFD leave out the smoothness and create a dark, propulsive atmosphere. Brilliant tune!
"Dr Boondigga..." finishes off with another wonderful piece of music. "Breakthrough" ties on earlier tracks like "This Room" and "Dark Days". This is Fat Freddy's at their best: Harmonic melodies, sublime horn sections, superb Dub drums and above all: Joe Dukie's crystal clear voice.
Still, to get an idea of how amazing this band really is, one has to attend their live show. It's a massive spectacle!
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