scoundrel, May 11, 2005
Matthew Dear’s first album, LEAVE LUCK TO HEAVEN, shows him exploring glitch house’s potential, managing to be experimental and danceable at the same time. From the layers of noise and hiss that skate atop “Fex” to the tech-throb of “The Crush,” Dear never lets you forget that you’re supposed to be grooving. For pure funky abstraction, turn to “In Unbending” or “Huffing Stuff,” each with disembodied voices. The processed lyrics add a touch of icy coldness, but don’t work in all cases. They sound narcoleptic amongst the thick dub of “Just Us Now”; they work to better effect on “But For You,” adding texture to the askew melody or on tongue-in-cheek “Dog Days.” Dance ‘til it hurts.