Daedelus | Love to Make Music To

Most likely to: give you a headache if you overindulge.

LA-based Daedelus cemented his place in the world of electronica as an eccentric artist who blends seemingly disparate musical styles like IDM and Hip-hop. Since his debut in 2000 he has created a voluminous body of work without ever stopping to realize that he misspelled his stage name. Oh well, his body of work is nothing if not labyrinthine enough to do the Daedalus, the mythical maze-maker, proud. Instead of bathing his tracks in a hiss of old samples and odd bits of spoken word, Love To Make Music To relies more on a variety of MCs and guest vocalists, including Daedelus’ wife Laura Darlington (“If We Should”).

Love To Make Music To starts out strong, with “Fair Weather Friends,” an up-beat number with Go! Team-like handclaps and cheering vocals that pays homage to Daedelus’ own “The Weathers Secret Service.” “Fair Weather Friends” includes the oft-repeated line, “We’ve got the same things on our minds as you boys do,” and it’s easily the most accessible track on the record. On “Twist the Kids” Daedelus’ give a nod to his jazz training then turns on his heel and offers the tight, percussive “Get off your Hi-hats” as the next track. The danceable “Make it So,” which features Michael Johnson, stands out for its resemblance to the crooning of Baby Dayliner until it ends with a beat straight from Low Life-era New Order. “Drummery Jam” harkens back to Daedelus’ earlier work, mixing a vintage piano riff, spoken word samples, and backing vocals reminiscent of Brian Wilson.

Unfortunately, around two-thirds of the way through the record implodes. “Assembly Lines” takes syncopation so far that the rhythm actually feels out of sync. With its ringing phone sample and incessant buzziness, “Hrs:Mins:Secs” is, thus far, the most annoying track of the year. It sounds as if a computer used a man to write it, instead of the other way around. Regardless of these thin spots Love To Make Music To is still strangely entertaining, but long time fans may ultimately prefer Daedelus’ even less conventional back catalog.