Go Plastic

After a lengthy detour into the world of lo-fi jazz, Squarepusher's Tom Jenkinson renewed his enthusiasm for techno music with 2001’s Go Plastic. At a time when drum and bass was becoming utterly passé, Jenkinson made what could be considered the first drum and bass revival album. This brand of manic techno music is obviously where he feels most at home, and his sojourn into other musical territories clearly left him with a renewed sense of purpose. “My Red Hot Car,” “Boneville Occident," and “Plaistow Flex Out” are more concise and patient than anything he's done before, while they retain the ornery sound experiments that have always kept Squarepusher weird. Aphex Twin was the artist who taught Jenkinson how to underscore his tracks with a layer of poignancy, and this quality is perfected on “Tommib.” The heart of Go Plastic lies with the skittering drum programming of “I Wish You Could Talk” and the aptly titled “My F*****g Sound,” both of which show Squarepusher at an apex of frenzied beauty.