Currently enjoying “Scribble” by Underworld

Underworld is about to release a new album, and I don’t mind telling you that I’m pretty excited about it. That’s admittedly nothing new; I’ve gotten pretty excited about the impending release of every Underworld album since Beaucoup Fish in 1999. But there’s a reason for that, and if their latest single is any indication, then the new album won’t disappoint.

The “Scribble” single features an album version and a radio edit, as well as a remix by a Belgian fellow named Netsky. If you’ve been following this blog for a while, then you’ve already heard the radio edit; it’s the same version heard in the video version I posted months ago, courtesy of Chart.

As a release, the single feels a lot more cohesive than its predecessors. Underworld has a bit of a history of tapping remixers who offer up radically different takes on the source material, and you don’t get a lot of that here. Instead, the album version and Netsky’s remix come across as variations on a theme; indeed, the disc could just as easily be mistaken for a single piece of music with three movements.

The album itself looks like it’s also going to be a bit of a break from tradition, at least in the sense that it’ll be one of their most collaborative releases yet. Veteran members Karl Hyde and Rick Smith have handed the material they’ve written over to a wide range of producers – including Welsh drum and bass DJ High Contrast, who was a vital contributor to “Scribble.” If the rest of the producers on the album lived up to the same standard, then we’re in for a good one for sure.

Posted in Currently Enjoying