Squarepusher premieres new single and video at the iconic Shibuya crossing in Tokyo, created by world renowned visual artist Daito Manabe – ahead of new album Be Up A Hello, out this Friday via Warp
VIDEO – “Terminal Slam” –
YouTube
The video for Squarepusher’s new single Terminal Slam just got its first play today at 00:00 on the 30th of January on one of the huge TV screens that populate Tokyo’s Shibuya Crossing, probably the most recognisable intersection in Japan and thought to be the busiest in the world.
This was the perfect location to premiere the video to the new single Terminal Slam, set in a very near-future Tokyo and sees a young protagonist don augmented reality glasses to subvert and corrupt the barrage of commercial advertising. One of the many highlights on Squarepusher’s celebrated upcoming album, Be Up a Hello, this new single piles on the acid breaks at huge velocity designed for the most hectic of dancefloors and was matched perfectly by the frenetic, collapsing dystopian world created here.
The video was helmed by longtime Squarepusher collaborator and world renowned visual artist, Daito Manabe. The director, artist and co-founder of the Rhizomatiks research group has won awards for the memorable Tokyo 2020 Olympics presentation they produced at the closing ceremony of the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics in Rio, using AR (Augmented Reality) Technology, and Rhizomatiks are also integral to the creation of this year’s Olympic opening ceremony in their hometown. They have collaborated with Sonar festival and also at Jodrell Bank, mapping live astronomical data as an artwork, projected onto the Lovell telescope, and have also worked with other music artists such as Bjork and one of the premier Kyogen performers, Nomura Mansai. Daito has worked with Squarepusher many times over the years, firstly on the Squarepusher x Z Machines project in 2013, then with the Rhizomatiks team providing live visuals for Shobaleader One’s highly acclaimed headline set at Sonic Mania in 2017 and most recently, for Squarepusher’s last Japanese tour.
“The concept began with the idea of implementing the near future, not the distant future, using modern technology. In the near future, It would be exciting to be able to rewrite ads as freely as is depicted in this music video while wearing such a device and wandering around the city.”
– Daito Manabe (Rhizomatiks)
LIVE news – Squarepusher starts his worldwide tour this Friday, headlining Berlin’s CTM Festival and will be throwing a London launch party the following night where he’ll be performing a rare and special DJ set and will be joined by labelmates Plaid, who will also be behind the decks.
TOUR DATES:
Jan. 31 CTM Festival, Berghain, Berlin – live
Feb. 01 Album Launch party, Five Miles, London – DJ set
March 14 Bangface Weekender – live
April 01 Club Quattro Nagoya – live
April 02 Club Quattro Umeda – Osaka – live
April 03 Studio Coast – Tokyo – live
April 09 Royale, Boston – live
April 11 Brooklyn Steel, NYC – live
April 14 SAT, Montreal – live
April 15 Danforth, Toronto, – live
April 16 St. Andrews, Detroit – live
April 17 Metro, Chicago – live
April 19 Bluebird Theater, Denver – live
April 22 Neumos, Seattle – live
April 23 Wonder Ballroom, Portland – live
April 24 The Midway, SF- live
April 25 1720, LA – live
May 01 LEV Festival, Gijon – live
May 08 Botanique, Brussels – live
May 09 Melkweg, Amsterdam – live
May 12 Metronome, Nottingham – live
May 13 Brudenell, Leeds – live
May 14 Concorde2, Brighton – live
May 15 Roundhouse, London – live
May 23 Nuits Sonores, Lyon – live
May 24 Riverside Festival, Glasgow – live
June 06 Primavera Festival, Barcelona – live *NEW*
Terminal Slam is taken from Be Up A Hello, which will be released on Friday and has already received widespread critical praise:
“His best in years” The Wire
“The frenetic, joyful bleeps are undoubtedly the sound of android’s dreams” The Guardian Guide
“Right back to the most surging, joyous rave rushes of his landmark releases. A wobbly-eyed, reach-for-the-lazers, wildly grinning cascade of terrifyingly disciplined noise and rhythm” Mixmag8/10
“This feels like a real milestone for Jenkinson, and for a career as fruitful as his, that’s no small feat” Clash 8/10
“An impressively wide ranging fusion of twisted synth melodies, knotty beats and sense-rupturing speed-jazz” Uncut 8/10
“25 years into his career, Jenkinson has lost none of his mischievousness” Crack 8/10
“Perky pop melodicism, acid squiggles, ball-bearings-down-a-drainpipe breakbeats and moody Vangelis synths.The sinister undertone that lurks beneath Jenkinson’s esoteric soundscapes make them so compelling” Q 4/5
“A fantastic addition to an already stellar canon of work” Inverted Audio
“It’s fast, unpredictable, and most importantly, fun. Only a handful of artists can make music this complex feel like such a good time” Resident Advisor
“Driving hyperspeed beats, erratic synth layers, completely unpredictable progression and a sprinkling of eardrum-rumbling thuds that make you feel like you’re in a warzone.” The Quietus
“Squarepusher has topped his career with a work that looks backwards technologically, yet presses forward with fresh dynamism” Electronic Sound
“It’s terroir is ravey hyper-beats and face melting breaks, while moments of Vangelis-meets-Satie respite are executed with subtlety and poignancy” Mojo
“Loads of fun, and feels as if made by someone who still has the future firmly in his sights” Long Live Vinyl
“Coupling signature breakbeats with turbo-charged acid” FACT
“A fun, hair-raising ride” DJ
Squarepusher
Be Up A Hello
(WARP)
Street Date: Jan. 31, 2020
[click here to pre-order]
Track List:
A1. Oberlove
A2. Hitsonu
A3. Nervelevers
A4. Speedcrank
A5. Detroit People Mover
B1. Vortrack
B2. Terminal Slam
B3. Mekrev Bass
B4. 80 Ondula
SQUAREPUSHER LINKS:
