Britpop
by A. G. Cook

From LedZep 05/16/2024 10:28 | #303558

A.G. Cook builds upon the massive 7G with another (much less) lengthy record. This one's bass, dream pop and IDM-inspired and more cohesive during its 1 hour, 40 minutes runtime. To put it bluntly, this isn't as unhinged as 7G, which ultimately works in its favor (and I was a fan of the messy setup of 7G). There are three discs.

The first disc is futuristic, rave-like alien music. Probably the best, and definitely the most appealing (to me) music A.G. Cook has done. It rarely goes into post-club, fully pop, or raging break mode, but keeps the intensity and ethereal-ness (is that even a word?). It's neither pop nor rave, and it still combines good elements of both. All the sweet, sour, dreamy, and ecstatic vocal performances are still here, but they are delivered with a chopped-up IDM and trancey quality. It's hard to describe this disc, but the style is everything I love: excellent music that can be enjoyed at home, but most of it could be played in a DJ set as well. Although, no sooner than 2054.

Starting with Serenade, the second part is more atmospheric, far more laid-back, and much more poppy. The same futuristic bass sounds are still present, but they mostly build the background textures. Atop the incredible instrumentals lay those "British" and "pop" vocals. And this truly is some of the best pop, twisted retro alt rock, and dreamy music he or anyone else has written. At times, it's even better than the first disc.

Never have the synths sounded as good as on the opening of Soulbreaker. Rarely has the bass sounded as "right" as on Equine. The third part of the story is the most unpredictable and sinister of the bunch. Like with disc 2, in certain moods this could be my favourite. The post-club and IDM elements are often brought to the forefront, but are again accompanied by the heavily distorted and autotuned vocals, as is tradition. It's everything we've heard on the first 2 parts an more.

Like the name suggests, all of this is British pop in 2024. A.G. Cook shows us the possibilities of retrofuturistic music. In an alternate reality where all musicians are mad scientists, this is how the future, past, and present of pop sounds like. I am beyond impressed with this one, even more so than with the monumental 7G. And that's a monumental achievement by itself - to shock more than those 3 hours of messy genius.

RIP PC Music.

I also hear there's a comprehensive lore, video material and the sites Witchfork, Wandcamp, and Wheatport. Haven't delved into any of the additional material or the Cookverse (I hope the fans called it Cookverse).

Best songs: Silver Thread Golden Needle, Britpop, You Know Me, Heartache, Luddite Factory Operator, Nice To Meet You, The Weave, Bewitched, Without, Soulbreaker, Equine, WWW, Pink Mask, Out Of Time