Prefuse73 - Security Screenings Album Review

Prefuse 73
Security Screenings

Right then…Guillermo Scott Herren, Prefuse 73 to you, has insisted that this, 'Security Screenings', is not an album, but merely a bridging gap between 'Surrounded by Silence' and what's to come. Well, whatever this is, it's good, very good.

Apparently influenced by his frustration with airport security procedures and various other happenings whilst doing the press for Silence, Screenings is a welcome return to form, reminiscent of 'Extinguished: Outtakes' and even the stripped down sound of his debut 'Vocal Studies + Uprock Narratives'.

The collaborations on Screenings are less obvious than on the
MC laden Silence. Kindred spirit Kieran Hebden (Four Tet) and Babatumde Adepimpe (TV on the Radio) both providing sterling contributions, even if Adepimpe's vocals have been layered and produced to the point where you'd have to check the liner notes to notice his involvement. Despite this both are welcome additions to the weft of this well woven fabric.

Although being quite a busy affair, Screenings is perfectly balanced and even manages to retain a sense of complicated ambience that fans have come to love. Herren at his most melancholy? I think so, but it doesn't stop this being another triumph by the glitch-hop pioneer. Perhaps his most introspective work to date; the samples used are often ones you can imagine him feeling rather than just using. Screenings also sees Herren's sense of humour shine again, this time directed at himself with a track entirely devoted to a less than complementary conversation with a friend about Silence. Lets just say his friend tells him what we were all thinking.

Regardless of which of his many alias' Herren produces under; Savath, Delarosa, or Piano Overlord, I certainly hope that he continues with Prefuse, especially if he keeps creating gems like this. There's no mistaking the sound of this album, it couldn't be anyone else, yet never becomes stale. Another cut up, sample-laden masterpiece; he has even thrown a few samples in there to moisten the palette of even the most seasoned hip-hop fan.

If this is a taste of what's to come, then I'm gonna sit bashing my knife and fork on the dinner table until it is served.

Thom Holmes