Tag Archives: Warp Records

New music – Kwes: Kinds (Warp Records)

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by Ben Hogwood, with text from the album press release

London artist kwes. returns with his new record Kinds, his first solo material in eight years; an evolutionary work of meditative, otherworldly minimalism, ambient, classical composition & shoegaze inspired by memory, colour and his kids, who also helped create the project’s artwork. As the world outside becomes noisier, this is a project that creates a space of tranquility and solace, while planting a flag in yet another new frontier of popular music. 

Kinds will be released by Warp Records on Friday 27 February, and you can listen to the new single Black (Grey) below:

Made after a reset following a period of burn out – a period alleviated by a family holiday in a popular holiday resort – kwes. was inspired to make Kinds after an incident involving his daughter: “My oldest daughter was busy drawing and in the midst of it, she accidentally knocked over her glass of drink and it went all over her work. It frustrated her for a few seconds, then she was fine and started another one… That was the catalyst for me to start the record – to decompress, to ‘release’ life-experience: good, bad and everything in between – to ‘commit it to tape’ as succinctly as possible, without too much deliberation”.

First previewed at the Warp Happening event at the Barbican, Kinds is formed of tracks named after colours, a system of synaesthetic classification founded on three personal principles: “The first being in relation to kinds of thoughts and feelings I had felt while making them, personal reminders / colour-field coded memories in a way…secondly, so that listeners can experience the music how they want to, without much narrative, and thirdly, I simply just love colour.“

Kinds favours a subtle wall of sound that recalls Brian Eno, and Jon Hassell’s fourth world music but also the noise and drone work of The Caretaker and Tim Hecker. It’s an introspective piece made with his children in mind. This is kwes.’ most immersive work yet, where lone melodies are allowed to expand and contract into vivid soundscapes.

Kinds will be exclusively premiered at the Tate Modern, London as part of a multi-sensory presentation, in collaboration with artist Ryan Vautier. Alongside the premiere, the event will stage an intimate conversation with kwes., as well as artist DJ sets throughout the night. The record will also be available to purchase exclusively at the event. 

In a recording career lasting more than 15 years, Kwes Sey has remained a musical explorer who doesn’t use conventional coordinates to find his destination.

The Lewisham-raised artist’s ‘Meantime’ EP in 2012 on Warp was a showcase of his artistic vision with four tracks, including the hit single ‘Bashful’ and the enduring, beautifully fraught  anthem ‘LGOYH – Let Go Of Your Hurt’, which appeared on the Rye Lane soundtrack over a decade later, this time featuring Sampha and Tirzah. His debut album ‘lp in 2013 went a step further, melding the poppier aspects of his production with noisier sound collages.

His ability predictably led to him becoming a sought after producer and collaborator. Damon Albarn, Solange Knowles, Loyle Carner, Bobby Womack, The xx, Mica Levi, Sampha, Tirzah, Kelela, Hot Chip’s Joe Goddard, Nubya Garcia, Rosie Lowe, Selah Sue, Black Coffee, Lucy Rose, as well as his brother Coby Sey have all called on his services in the studio. kwes. has also worked on film scores, providing the soundtrack to the critically acclaimed romantic comedy Rye Lane as well as the groundbreaking documentary Black Is Beautiful, about photographic artist and activist Kwame Brathwaite.

Published post no.2,797 – Friday 13 February 2026

Switched On – Bibio: Phantom Brickworks II (Warp)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

This is the second instalment in Bibio’s Phantom Brickworks project, an ambient / drone concern begun in 2017. On it, Stephen Wilkinson (who is Bibio) has the aim of exploring “the human echoes still present in various sites around Britain. Wilkinson has visited these locations, observed their gradual decline, and responded with improvised and composed music.”

The sequel brings forward new, intriguing sites, described as ‘vast scars on the natural landscape, some surviving through memories, historic clips and photographs. A few remain submerged from ordinary sights, while some exist purely as legends and stories’.

What’s the music like?

Immediately restful, as Bibio leads us to an appealing calm place. The loop subtly powering Dinorwic moves at a very slow pace but maintains its poise, while the magical Dorothea’s Bed has wordless voices transmitting an icy beauty. A higher register piano twinkles in the fog of Phantom Brickworks IV, while Llyn Peris reflects the dappled light of a winter sky, the sun near the horizon.

Tegid’s Court rocks gently like a Berceuse, leading into the immensely calming, spoken word Brograve. Spider Bridge once again makes evocative use of the piano’s higher register, a distinctive feather in Bibio’s cap.

Does it all work?

It does. Bibio has mastered the art of making more from less, and these pieces are ideally weighted.

Is it recommended?

Phantom Brickworks II is strongly recommended, another feather in the cap of an artist whose versatility continues to be most impressive. Having charmed us with pastoral electronica, Bibio now has real durability as a long-form ambient artist.

For fans of… Harold Budd, Loscil, Luke Abbott, Jon Hopkins

Listen & Buy

Published post no.2,377 – Friday 29 November 2024

Switched On: Aphex Twin – Blackbox Life Recorder 21f / in a room7 F760 (Warp Records)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

New music from Aphex Twin always feels like something of an event, and although this EP has been out in the public domain for over a month the music is still well worth stopping to experience and contemplate.

What’s the music like?

This is Aphex Twin somewhere towards his best, writing music packed with incident but somehow finding time for inward-facing ambience. He achieves this balance perfectly on Blackbox Life Recorder 21f, where a particularly busy rhythm track plays pinball around the stereo picture, but a sonorous bass and overarching keyboard line give time and space.

zin2 test5 is a deeply intimate experience, one man and his machine – its introverted chords leaving their mark long after the active rhythm track is stopped. in a room7 F760 uses cowbells alongside the thick, woolly chords, the experience like a plane flying from sunshine into dense cloud and back out again.

The Parallax mix of Blackbox Life Recorder 21f brings out the fatter low notes, introducing more of a sci-fi feel.

Does it all work?

It does – and all easy on the ear for an Aphex Twin release. Or should that be uneasy? For beyond the ambience lurks a little dread.

Is it recommended?

It is – typically thought provoking work from one of Britain’s finest electronic music makers.

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Switched On – Aphex Twin: Blackbox Life Recorder 21f (Warp Records)

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by Ben Hogwood

The new Aphex Twin EP surfaced a couple of weeks ago, and has enjoyed frequent rotation on stations such as 6Music. It displays all the properties of his best, beat-driven ambient music – and as such is ideal for that post-Monday work feeling where downtempo music is required. Sit back, take your eyes off the screen and enjoy Blackbox Life Recorder 21f:

On Record – James Ellis Ford: The Hum (Warp Records)

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by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

James Ellis Ford has a most impressive musical CV, whether on the front line or behind the scenes. As an active member of Simian, Simian Mobile Disco and The Last Shadow Puppets, he has never been short of a burning riff or two. These two very different musical outfits enjoyed a more progressive form of rock and then a searing, acidic complement to The Chemical Brothers.

As a producer, Ford has lent production savvy to the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Foals, Klaxons and Jessie Ware among others, and most recently played a big part behind the scenes on Depeche Mode’s new album Memento Mori. He has also produced the upcoming Blur album, The Ballad Of Darren. With all that work in the bank, his first solo album proper – on which he plays all the instruments – could be seen as time off from the day job! Yet it is a meaningful achievement, and clearly good enough for a label as illustrious as Warp to sign him up.

What’s the music like?

Largely unscripted – in the best possible way. Ford’s musical diary to date has shown his ability to move between genres with no effort, and The Hum does this while sticking to a principle of pure musical enjoyment. On occasion the approach is reminiscent of his early days in Simian, when they used to support bands such as Emerson Lake & Palmer.

It is good to hear James singing as well as playing all the instruments, for his voice fits in well with either the psychedelic approach or the pastoral one. I Never Wanted Anything is quite sweetly harmonic in this regard, while The Yips is a brilliant contrast, its creeping riff leaning towards progressive rock.

Pink Floyd cast an attractive shadow – Us and Them especially – as Tape Loop #7 and Pillow Village establish the mood of the album, and on Golden Hour a rich multi-layered vocal comes forward. Squeaky Wheel glints with a touch of the industrial – with passing references that flit between pastoral contentment and the abrasion of Cabaret Voltaire.

A pair of instrumentals in the middle hit the spot. The woozy title track lulls the listener into a false sense of security before Ford goes all-out funk and prog in equal parts, a loping groove and chunky synthesizers giving Caterpillar rich slabs of colour.

Ford moves through the gears on Emptiness, another eventful number, before the soft, warm postlude Closing Time, with a melody that uncannily shadows the Neighbours theme tune.

Does it all work?

Yes. There is very little padding here, and Ford has plenty of interesting ideas – so the mind and ears are always stimulated.

Is it recommended?

Yes, with enthusiasm. Pretty much everything Ford has been involved with has musical vitality and progression, and this solo album is no exception. With any luck it is the start of a series, rather than a one-off.

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