FOUR TET

The Exchange, Bristol | February 22nd

Whichever way you look at it, Four Tet’s transformation from purveyor of twinkly electronica to bonafide dance music heavyweight is complete. In an unusual inversion of the typical relationship between DJing and production, Four Tet’s DJ career has blossomed late, and has elevated and broadened his profile a good ten years since he first started releasing records.

Fans that have joined the Four Tet party in recent years may expect a lot of things – afro-infused beats, looping garage, chiming techno – although probably not the shuffling broken beat he first made his name producing. But if his DJ sets now outnumber his live shows by a ratio of 5:1, then a set of his own material is all the more satisfying – and his immersion in dance music has shifted his own productions up a gear. In a small, hot, packed and sweaty venue, the intricacy of Four Tet’s scatter-shot rhythms and bubbling, joyous melodies are a sharp contrast to the amped up crowd. Its great to see him get such a raucous reception – and its more than deserved – but there is something slightly incongruous about the chanting/fist-pumping audience and Four Tet’s careful, almost cerebral style.

Tellingly, it’s a track that directly references his detour into, ahem, ‘clubland’ – the loose-limbed and euphoric Plastic People – that gets one of the biggest responses of the night. Taken from his most compelling long-player, There is Love in You, it marks a merging of cultures which continues to sound fresh and exciting to this day: majestic, joyous melody welded on to intricate, experimental techno. As the spooky, ethereal but still resolutely pounding Love Cry closes the gig, one sentiment floats above the crowd in a collective thought bubble: it’s a genuine honour to hear such an exciting and important artist in a venue this size.

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Words: Adam Corner

Photo: ‘Artbeats

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