Chattanooga Pulse

Four Tet
There Is Love in You
(Domino)

It’s commonly said that Four Tet, Kieran Hebden’s one-man band, is an electronic outfit that’s difficult to classify.  Hebden has a huge arsenal of samples and rhythm loops, and he arranges, overlays, and wrangles them in non-obvious ways to avoid any neat genre classification.  While typical dance-oriented music has a first-and-foremost aim of invoking a compulsory physical reaction, Four Tet appealed to listeners who sought a more mentally-stimulating kind of music, with multiple forces at work and an avoidance of formulas.  It was slightly odd, then, to hear the Ringer EP from 2008, which had a more outwardly dance sheen and insistent, driving beats.  There Is Love in You is Four Tet’s latest album and first proper full-length since 2005’s Everything Ecstatic; it continues in the direction of Ringer, traveling down minimalist pathways with glitchy sonic elements strewn along the way.

Four Tet often uses vocal samples, but they’re mostly utilized to shape sound textures, rather than providing any anthemic, strong vocal hooks.  For example, one track uses an obscured, faintly audible Chiffons vocal sample, and the title of “Love Cry” more »