Initially leaking into the public domain via instrumental form in March this year under the mix album flag "Come Get It, I Got It", "...The Free Association" now fleshes out these early, sketchy takes into the real, full-on, made-for-live version of ace Belfast DJ DAVID HOLMES' new project.
Aided and abetted by associate Steve Hilton (of David Arnold fame) and two remarkable new vocalists in San Franciscan Sean Reveron and (listen up, big style!) Petra Jean Phillipson, "...Free Association" is very much a song-based project, unlike Holmes' previous soundtrack-style efforts like "This Film's Crap, Let's Slash The Seats" and "Let's Get Killed."
And, while you can hardly knock the quality inolved in those releases, "...The Free Association" is - at least to these pummelled ears - certainly Homes' finest hour to date. With the emphasis flitting democratically between noir-ish atmospherics and full-tilt testifyin' funk, this is truly infectious stuff of the first water.
In truth, the album takes a few minutes to get into gear, with first track "Don't Rhyme No Mo'" finding Reveron battering you around the head with his feverish rap malarkey. Second tune, "I Wish I Had A Wooden Heart", however, elevates proceedings to far loftier heights, with Petra Jean's sensual vocals creating space on the shelf between Billie Holliday and Beth Gibbons against a backdrop of gritty, low-riding funk.
Following this triumph, the pressure rarely lets up: the remaining 8 tracks broadly maintaining this balance between cool atmosphere and deep fried grooves. Dealing with the uptempo wares first, outstanding tracks inlcude "Everybody Knows", where tight, itchy guitars set up a Spy theme feel before Petra and Sean get all ecstatic on our ass; "La Dolce Vita" - where Reveron freestyles manically over a bassline half Motown and half 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' and "Paper Underwear", wherein a nagging guitar figure unravels over a surefire beat and a Dexys-ish horn section slugs it out with some precision Krautrockin' electronica.
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If anything, though, the slower cuts usurp even these. "Free Ass O-C-8" finds Reveron spouting inspired lyrical baloney all over a determinedly stoned lope of a rhythm, while "Somedays" pits descending riffs against Phillipson's keening vocal and some Red Snapper-style jazziness. Best of all, though, is the icy, dublike torch song "Whistlin' Down The Wind" that closes the album. Here, Petra Jean's best vocal of all accompanies an arcane blues that's equal parts David Lynch and Portishead.
It's no surprise to this reviewer that David Holmes is widely respected by rock's firebrand revolutionaries like the Manics and Primal Scream, as his willingness to take chances and effectively cross-pollinate styles has ensured his back catalogue is nigh on exemplary. "..Free Association", though, tops the lot. You'll not hear a finer dance-based album all year.
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