Port Rhombus

Though it's only three songs long, the Port Rhombus EP feels like an encapsulation of Squarepusher’s style circa 1997. The title song is magnificent, seamlessly blending the best aspects of Tom Jenkinson’s production. It's subtler than his famously spastic workouts, offering a coaxing bass line that sweeps along before eventually colliding with a frantic cascade of drums that bring the song to its climax. The piece is melodic and melancholy without falling victim to the sentimentality that sometimes mars the likeminded work of Jenkinson’s friend and contemporary Richard D. James (a.k.a. Aphex Twin). The remaining two songs further draw the difference between the two composers, who were lumped together throughout the '90s. A student of jazz mechanics, Jenkinson uses these songs to expound on different elements of rhythm. “Problem Child” is a bass workout reminiscent of Jenkinson’s hero Stanley Clarke, while “Significant Others” is a clinic in drumming and other percussive techniques.