The funkiest man in music (apologies to George Michael) is back. Fatboy Slim, aka Norman Cook, weaves together an album whose sound is distinctly his.
The album has some tremendous music...though this sound is stretching the definition of music as we know it. Throughout the album, you'll be treated to a number of off-beat variations that should totally blow your mind. Whether it's taking a four-word lyric and repeating it twenty times with a slight change in tempo, or an atonal piano piece with soothing contralto vocals, the groove is definitely well filled in. Ah, but careful - there are a few explicit lyrics here.
Though there is no number which will quite be as famous as his previous hits - "Right Here, Right Now" and "Rockefeller Skank" - a few do stand out. First up there's "Talking 'Bout my Baby", which has samples of an old jazz number; this is followed by "Sunset (Bird of Prey)" which has the great Jim Morrison on it. The raciest piece of the lot is definitely "Mad Flava" which demands that you "push the tempo". The piano is used to great effect on numbers like "Song For Shelter" and "Demon". The other tracks, though not great in their own right, do add to the overall sound of the album.
This article was first published on27 Dec 2000.