James Ferraro and The Bodyguard

The Berkeley Suite, Glasgow
Sunday June 17th
4 stars
Simple Minds as proto techno pioneers? Probably not, but there’s more
than a patina of future pomp stadiumistas early instrumental Theme for
Great Cities in the opening few minutes of American electronicist and
sometime half of the Skaters James Ferraro’s show. With Ferraro hunched
over an old Korg synth, the martial rhythms that pulse his first of two
extended pieces on this Braw/Cry Parrot/Shaddaz co-promoted show are a
long way from the sublime jauntification of last year’s ‘Far Side
Virtual’ album. This is a denser, harder sound, awash with glacial
keyboard squiggles and Morriconeish chorales conjuring up a wave of
analog nostalgia only for it to be pummelled into submission without
mercy.

Accompanied by The Bodyguard, who appears to be a dreadlocked
technician enabling further sonic adventures, Ferraro goes quiet after
thirty minutes, almost losing his audience to incessant chit-chat
during the longeurs, before bouncing back with an abstract dub affair
more akin to to his recent 'Inhale C-4 $$$$$' mixtape delivered in his
Bebetune$ guise. The grandiose clatter it morphs into stretches every
 which way in a bouncing display of old school classicism.

The List, June 2012

ends