Basketball – Maw 12” EP (The Broadway to Boundary)
It’s often said that it’s not who got there first, it’s who gets their second that makes the biggest splash. But what if you’re coming in ninth? Or seventeenth? What then? These are good questions to ask of Basketball, a multicult electro-pop-dance outfit from Vancouver or someplace near there. They get the samplers running, they reappropriate all manner of Asian and Saharan music, add beats, and quantize everything so it all adds up. When M.I.A. and Diplo did this, it was kind of inspiring and still pretty gully. When Chucha Santamaria y Usted sent in their record for review, it was found to be along those lines, if a bit more focused and realistic about its purpose and presentation. This four-song EP is about as cohesive as someone spilling a sack of coffee beans all over the floor, rocking the same vibes as the two aforementioned records in a blaring, sentiment-free statement of action that goes nowhere. You won’t remember these songs after they’re done bludgeoning you with rhythms and politics because there’s nothing that sticks out. It s a blur, and it should adequately illustrate what not to do when trying to stake your rep on sounding like a style of music that’s still making the rounds, and not trying to add anything to it. (http://www.thebroadwaytoboundary.com)
(Doug Mosurock)
