Totems Flare - CD

One of Warp's rising stars, Clark, releases what is undoubtedly his breakthrough album. TOTEMS FLARE is the Berlin-based, UK native's boldest effort to date, featuring breakneck dance, driving techno and baroque melodics. It's also perhaps his most accessible, as it's the first to feature his own vocals. All of the hyperactive intellect and technically dazzling detail you'd expect from this master Electronic producer is here, but there is straightforward musicianship at work that is no longer subtle Chris uses guitar, drums and piano (albeit unrecognizeably processed at times). Following the critical acclaim of Clark's two previous full lengths, BODY RIDDLE and TURNING DRAGON, this latest effort shows the steady and clear progression of an artist who has combined his incredible ambition with a natural ability to create soundscapes that are as welcoming as they are hard-hitting. These qualities along with Clark's refusal to partition music by subculture or allegiance, and his natural desire to communicate directly without obscuring the details, pushes Clark past the Warp sound that was his original calling card, into a completely new and uncharted territory.