Review // Beefus B – Experiments in Sound

Words: Susan Westerfield

Admit or not, we all need music to work by. Many among us seek music to create by.

Look no further. This is the fuel for your synapses. Beefus B’s latest offering doses you in mathematical capsules, indeed the tracks number sixteen with each is named for its position. There is a variety in these tracks that surprises, given their clinical titles. Enjoy the ride: shuffle mode was preselected for you. All you have to do is push play.

This album is quite cinematic in its delivery. And unlike cinema, Beefus B doesn’t rely on clichés to make an impression. You will hear within these tracks echoes of interstellar travel, cop show chase scenes, orchestral interludes, and even landscapes of places you have traveled and forgotten. You will hear everything from serene psychedelic riffs to tightly produced motoric propulsion.

Track 1 hits the ground running downhill in a burst of fusion. The second track brings a change of mood and drops you effortlessly into a groove. What strikes me most as all of these tracks play in succession is the variety of texture and styles make a seriously cohesive greater picture. I honestly did not expect that. Nor did I expect to get attached to a collection of numbered “experiments” like I did. This album cruises start to finish.

Do not be lulled by that slowly descending scale at the beginning of track 4, piano sounds enter the mix and subsequently bob and weave around a long gunpowder fuse. Track 6 is a standout for me. It is a sonic portrait that, when it begins, brings to mind gently syncopated pentatonic Balinese instrumentals. This track has a narrative of its own. This is the one with the deep story to tell. It’s got a series of subdivided miniature movements that never lose momentum.

This album has got style and substance for days. The ebb and flow of these precision tooled medicinal grade tracks is a gift. The only ingredient missing here is you. Absolutely recommend.