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THE JUAN MACLEAN, "I ROBOT/LESS THAN HUMAN"
This new single from The Juan MacLean has the distinction of being theDFA label's first 10" release, even though the music itself is notterribly distinct otherwise. "I Robot" is a significant departure fromJuan MacLean's familiar brand of floor-filling electro-dance, most ofwhich had a live, analog feel.DFA
This time around, and true to thetrack's title, MacLean clears a more cybernetic causeway, creating a Trans-Europe Express-on-methamphetamineenergy that pushes the track into dizzyingly hyperactive and syntheticterritory that might have been better left unexplored. Along thisfuturistic highway, MacLean takes a few short off-ramps into stutteringbeat deconstructions, intriguing vocal samples and Commodore 64anachronisms, but ultimately the trip left me with nothing more than asore ass and a coin tray empty of toll money. "Less Than Human" on theflip side is even more self-consciously retro, a vaguely Teutonic(again) house exploration heavy on the analog side of things, thatfeels like it was tossed off very quickly and cheaply. This is notnecessarily always a bad thing, but in the case of this single, alittle more attention to detail might have been in order. Juan MacLeanhas a full-length LP due out this summer, and I can only hope that this10" is not an indication of a complete style change, as I honestlypreferred the early stuff.
This time around, and true to thetrack's title, MacLean clears a more cybernetic causeway, creating a Trans-Europe Express-on-methamphetamineenergy that pushes the track into dizzyingly hyperactive and syntheticterritory that might have been better left unexplored. Along thisfuturistic highway, MacLean takes a few short off-ramps into stutteringbeat deconstructions, intriguing vocal samples and Commodore 64anachronisms, but ultimately the trip left me with nothing more than asore ass and a coin tray empty of toll money. "Less Than Human" on theflip side is even more self-consciously retro, a vaguely Teutonic(again) house exploration heavy on the analog side of things, thatfeels like it was tossed off very quickly and cheaply. This is notnecessarily always a bad thing, but in the case of this single, alittle more attention to detail might have been in order. Juan MacLeanhas a full-length LP due out this summer, and I can only hope that this10" is not an indication of a complete style change, as I honestlypreferred the early stuff. samples:
