Gentle Friendly 'Ride Slow' (Upset The Rhythm) Released 02/11/09

It wasn’t that long ago that the prospect of combining de-tuned guitars, processed beats, abstract keyboards and decomposed vocals in one giant-sized blender would have been frowned upon and promptly ignored. These days it has become something of a par for the course, and rightly so as the likes of HEALTH, **** Buttons and worriedaboutsatan have already proved satisfyingly so far this year. Well now, you can add London-based duo Gentle Friendly to that list too, as this genre colliding, all encompassing melee of a record isn’t just up there with 2009’s finest, but actually stands tall as one of the most genuinely original collections released this decade.

When David Maurice and Daniel Boyle – aka Gentle Friendly – released the limited edition ‘Night Tape’ EP late last year, there was already a buoyant buzz forming around their delicately poised lo-fi excursions into the unknown. Indeed for Boyle, having already contributed to the similarly impossible to categorise Banjo Or Freakout, it was more a case of having a dominantly creative input into something of his own making rather than just a hired hand for someone else. Its certainly difficult to contemplate what inspired them to create such an eclectic array of sounds as those displayed across ‘Ride Slow’ and its fifteen pieces, let alone try and understand if any concept was involved in its making. It’s also worth noting that the majority of this record was put together in a single take, almost to exacerbate those who see them as little more than a middle class rich kid’s play thing. The only definable concept here is that Gentle Friendly view the recording process as if they’re playing their last ever show, and as life-affirming gestures such as that go, the process has paid off handsomely.

As the random ape loops of ‘No Infinity On’ signal closure on the sound that dominated last year’s debut release, the incongruous chimes and incisive beats of ‘Rip Static’ herald a new dawning blessed with a hardihood and purpose that simply sets them apart from most of their contemporaries, certainly this side of the Atlantic at any rate. Over the course of its three-and-a-half minutes, ‘Rip Static’ delivers the kind of skewered pop statement that These New Puritans had been intending to construct on their largely disappointing ‘Beat Pyramid’, while simultaneously adding a furious pop infused caveat to boot.

Elsewhere, ‘Lovers Rock’ recalls both The Shamen and HEALTH in equal measures, the former’s often forgotten neo-psychedelic beginnings circa ‘Young Til Yesterday’ coupled with the Los Angeles foursome’s masterful excesses in overstepping any boundary line set out in front of them. The organic ‘Vincentt’ and slightly off kilter ‘No 808 On’ show a density and depth so rare in homegrown artists today, which when assessing Gentle Friendly are still only a relatively new two-piece decrees ‘Ride Slow’ an even more engaging proposition.

An experimental journey from start to finish, ‘Ride Slow’ doesn’t just push itself and its inventors to the limit at every twist and turn, it also epitomizes just how far a little bit of imagination here and there can become the standard bearer for the future. One can almost imagine the likes of Tyondai Braxton, Randy Randall and Bradford Cox looking aghast in awe, and so they should, as ‘Ride Slow’ is something of a timeless masterpiece Gentle Friendly can sure as hell be proud of.