Unauthorised item in the bagging area

Saturday 3 July 2021

Luxury Problems

A few weeks ago an internet friend recommended I investigate the recordings of Andy Stott, a name I was aware of but hadn't heard anything by. Andy is Manchester based, a producer and musician who makes music that fits into the categories labelled dub techno, experimental and industrial ambient. His back catalogue is extensive- seven albums since 2007 and multiple singles and EPs plus more recordings as Andrea and in partnership with Miles Whittaker as Millie And Andrea. I was nodded towards 2012's Luxury Problems as the place to start and this is the title track from that album, Stott's music and the chopped up voice of his former piano teacher Alison Skidmore.

Luxury Problems

There's a lot going in the music, layers of precisely laid down sounds- rhythms, sudden bursts of melodies, grinding basslines, a vaguely menacing or unsettling edge, offset by the lightness of the vocals. It's very exact and urban feeling music, ideal for listening to through headphones, textures and feel- there's definitely something of the end of the night about it too. Very impressive and there's loads more to dig into which I suspect I shall enjoy doing over time. 

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is cracking, a great discovery - thanks

drew said...

Check out the Brief Encounter 12" and the Nervous Ep, magic stuff. The Millie and Andrea singles are magic.