Mark-Henning: The Dog's Bollocks
foundsound

foundsound's latest 12-inch comes by way of London, England and one Mark-Henning—corporate whore by day, subversive underground sound sculptor by night—with a little remix help from Ontarion J. Hunsberger, he of Revolver and Cynosure renown. The Dog's Bollocks oozes a playful style that merges Matthew Dear's grooving strut with the minimal noise aesthetic of kindred foundsound artists like someone else and fusiphorm. The disc opens in fine form with the dancefloor gem “Bombay Kicks,” its tight stabbing shuffle-funkhouse pulse joined by all manner of burbling blips and voice slurs. Hunsberger's 'Kicked In Bombay' makeover strips away much of the original's sounds (though holds on to the vocal exhalations) in order to better expose the whirrs and whooshes of its clickety innards. On the B side, “British Bulldog” ups the voice ante with warped “Save me” pleas, Henning underlaying its ascending morph with an itchy mechano pulse and bouncy bass swoops. “Am I Bothered Though” glides as breezily as the other three, despite being besieged throughout by croaks, gurgles, whooshes, and a recurring “Yo!” motif. The Dog's Bollocks is more of the foundsound goodness we've come to know and love.

April 2006