Before Amon Adonai Santos de Aravjo Tobin shortened his name to simply Amon Tobin, he released his debut album under Cujo alias (indeed borrowed from a Stephen King novel), on a small south London label, Ninebar Records. Soon after, Ninja Tune noticed the Brazilian born artist, and signed him in 1997 for his critically acclaimed Bricolage. The rest, as we say, is history. Covering Tobin's bio and discography is a lengthy task, so I'll leave the research up to you [and shame on you if don't know the artist already]. In 2002, Adventures In Foam was re-released on Ninja Tune, this time as a double CD, containing previously unreleased material. Here's a statement from the label: "[The] fact remains that "Adventures In Foam" was a really good record, one that deserved to be heard, so when Ninja were offered an opportunity to re-release it, they jumped at the chance. Not least, because a rather unscrupulous company in the States have been circulating a version of the record with a changed tracklist, different (and unapproved) cover art and mis-titled tracks". So this should settle it once and for all. If you first fell in love with Amon Tobin after hearing his Bricolage, full of jazz infused, Latin influenced downtempo and drum'n'bass breaks and broken beats, then you'll definitely enjoy another round of Tobin's signature sampling techniques. You'll even smile after recognizing familiar sounds and beats, later reused in his subsequent albums. Definitely still enjoyable after all these years, as a first or repeated listen. A must for collectors. Artist cloud includes DJ Food, Funki Porcini, Bonobo, Wagon Christ and The Herbaliser. Favorite unreleased track: The Brazilianaire.
myspace.com/tobinamon | amontobin.com
ninjatune.net
2 comments:
I've known about Amon's previous incarnation as Cujo for a long time but unfairly never gave his earlier tunes a listen. It wasn't until I had Amon on Solipsistic Nation as a guest for a retrospective mix of his career so far that I listened to Adventures In Foam and I was blown away. It's that good!
All the elements that would inform Amon's later work were in place: the jazzy bossa nova beats and sounds, the dark and twisted vibes, and Amon's wry sense of humor.
Amon's always been an inventive guy, from his first release as Cujo to his latest album, Foley Room. I eagerly await his next release!
It was your show that got me excited about hearing the Cujo album once again! For those checking out the Solipsistic Nation episode mentioned above - don't miss the unedited interview for more insights!!!
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