Generic Greeting are a collective with their fingers in many pies. Encompassing artists of all persuasions, from producers, DJ’s and VJs, to illustrators, designers, photographers and film makers, the collective numbers fifteen members in total with each tending to wear a few different creative hats. Their latest musical release ‘Generic Greeting #3’ is a full-length compilation album featuring tracks from their six producers: FREnchfire, Big War, Kernon, Szajna, Quieteyes and No Arms, as well as a stellar feature from Bay Area rapper Issue who has worked with Big War in the past.
The album is a journey through experimental electronica: featuring ambient and experimental beats from Big War and Kernon, muted hyper colour influences from Quieteyes, a rolling fusion of percussion and warbling mids from No Arms, sleek burial-esque soundscapes from FREnchfire and oddball house leanings from Szajna. Accompanied by a collaborative piece of artwork from the illustrators behind the first two compilations, Will Berry and Kidmilk, and new member Emily Briselden-Waters, as a whole the compilation reflects Generic Greeting’s growth both musically and artistically.
Opening with ‘Leap’, a surging track from Quieteyes, the album starts off with sampled vocal clips followed by a euphoric rise of synths, reverb and clattering drum work. Folding seamlessly into Kernon’s ‘Thugg’, an intense and energetic affront on the senses, powered by its heavy bass frequencies and wild, racing percussion, things are amped up a notch and the tone is already pretty much set: freedom of expression is the order of the day, and each track is different to the next. From the sampled haunted house laughter on ‘Thugg’ to the winding, ominous melody that opens Big War’s ‘Urk’, for a moment images of creepy clowns and distorted fairground mirrors reign supreme as the beats take a decidedly trippy turn.
FREnchfire brings everything back down to earth with some house/post-dub styling on ‘Classic’, followed by the intricately percussive ‘Kuhn’ from California-based member No Arms. Szajna, the collective’s most definitively house-led producer, delivers a couple of on point remixes. Fresh off the bat from releasing his ‘People are well funny’ EP, he reworks FREnchfire’s ‘I’m still in love with you’ as well as his own track ‘Babybel Tamagotchi’. However, his stand out contribution has to be ‘Eyewish’: a total feel-good summer rave tune with twinkling steel drums and the kind of tight four to the floor beat that can get your feet side-stepping for hours.
Big War brings the hip hop on ‘Eternity’ which features mask-rocking rapper and son of E-40 Issue. Sitting on the ambient side of the genre, the languid beat and Issue’s unhurried flow complement each other perfectly, demonstrating just how well Big War’s productions suit themselves to rap. Other stand outs include Kernon’s ‘Pathological Hysteria’, which sounds like it could have fallen out of a Sony Nintendo, and Quieteyes ‘Tell me nothing’: an anthemic track with twinges of early Hudmo.
Melding a variety of sounds into the compilation’s sixteen tracks, each producer brings their own flavour of electronic music to the table. From the post-dub sounds of FREnchfire on ‘Classic’, ‘I’ve always loved you, since I was born’ and ‘The hole only visible from the top of the bus in Rusholme’, to the heavy, whirring productions of Kernon (previously a member of ambient house outfit D/R/U/G/S), the compilation is an explosion of innovative club music.
Now available on Cloud’s tape label ‘Anti-Party Music’ as a hand numbered, limited edition cassette (for those who want something really pretty to look at) or on Bandcamp for name your price download, make sure you check out this killer release. Also below you can listen to the latest in their mix series, contributed by Berlin-based house duo Black Loops. Enjoy!
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