It’s a brave and frequently stupid move to release two discs as a ‘debut’, but Glasgow’s Pablo (aka Michael Hunter) has been around long enough to know what he’s doing. Not only have his sounds terrorised players of Grand Theft Auto IV, they have also graced the murderous CSI series. Disc one of ‘Turntable Technology’ sports a full album of sampled, cut-up mayhem whilst disc two harbours, er, instrumental versions of disc one and a few leisurely, string-driven bonus tracks.
The strange thing is that, though disc one is jam-packed with the kind of music not dissimilar to a polished, prolonged version of Jurassic 5’s ‘Lesson 6: The Lecture’, the record lacks feeling. Flip to the stripped back version of disc two, however, and a whole new side to the tracks becomes apparent. When vocal snippets aren’t battling for attention over layered noise, Hunter’s base proves more satisfying. For example, though ‘The Story Of Sampling’ is an excellent demonstration of the capabilities of sampling technology, the backing alone is more than enough to hold and affect a listener’s attention.
Similarly, both ‘Music Maestro’, ‘Turn The Page’ and ‘Turntable Technology’ gain in stature without the added, cloying snippets. As if that wasn’t enough, disc two also offers up plenty of mood-laden bonuses. Coming from a man employed for his cinematic orchestration, these are the most rewarding moments. Buy this album, and ignore disc one.
