Squarepusher - Enstrobia

Ironically, with so much focus on SXSW from musicians and the industry, being down in Austin for the past week caused me to be a little out of the loop and miss some new music. On March 11, Squarepusher released a three-track EP called Enstrobia as a sort of companion piece to his 2012 LP Ufabulum. While one can identify signature Squarepusher sounds, this little collection of tracks is, unusually, designed for the dance crowd, with the possible exception of the track "40.96a" (I've only listened to a short preview of this one). Fittingly, these pieces seem to have developed through Squarepusher's recent live performances.

Squarepusher says on Warp.net: "The Ufabulum live show has been constantly developing over the last year of touring – including using parts of Enstrobia at specific events. Although not originally part of the project, these pieces seem very integrated with it now and have triggered a lot of interest from fans who hadn’t heard them before.”

From Bleep (where the EP is available to purchase): "The absence of live instruments was a selling point for Squarepusher’s last LP ‘Ufabulum’, and there’s no better way to exemplify the rule than this standalone release of bonus cuts. Lead track ‘Angel Integer’ takes a marching click track and smooths it over with Sega MasterSystem synths; ‘Panic Massive’ plays grunge with greetings card chips, and ’40.96a’ features Tom Jenkinson’s own voice and haunting digital whalesong. Another jewel in his crown."

Listen to "Angel Integer" from Enstrobia