ELECTRONICA

Jim Carrollreviews Minotaur Shock

MINOTAUR SHOCK Amateur Dramatics 4AD ****

Dave Edwards is Minotaur Shock, the one-man-band responsible for a couple of well-received albums of warm, slippery, fuzzy electronic sounds. To date, most of Edwards's repertoire is what you would call "interesting". Amateur Dramatics moves the whole kit and kaboodle to a different realm entirely. As Edwards tries on a range of new brighter, punchier sonic suits for size, it quickly becomes apparent that these styles are a perfect fit for him and his musical range. The action-packed combination of woozy brass, slippery electro, pastoral folk, chamber music segueways, blissful pop interludes and mesmeric acid patches respond superbly to Edwards's poking and probing. With every listen, you'll find something new to get excited about. By the way, Amateur Dramatics is available only as a digital download, with Edwards applying a different price per track. www.minotaurshock.com JIM CARROLL

Download tracks:Am Dram, Zookeeper, My Burr