HUDSON MOHAWKE: Lantern
This review was originally meant to publish elsewhere, but ultimately didn’t. So I’m publishing it here, since I’ve always wanted to do something with this page.
As part of the current vanguard of artists straddling both rap and electronic music, Scottish producer Hudson Mohawke traverses the world year round, playing to packed crowds and logging studio time with stars like Kanye West and Drake. His first solo album since 2009, Lantern translates his daily grind into musical form, structuring the project to aurally capture the peaks and valleys of a 24-hour day.
Typically ambitious, concept albums like this are too often rife with artistic peril, with creators dedicating an inordinate amount of time to insular ideas than their rewarding execution. Yet Mohawke rises to the occasion with dexterous zeitgeist-popping grace, producing a modern electronic pop showpiece appreciated on multiple levels. While traces of the club-friendly trap EDM hybrids he’s become known for linger, Lantern largely builds on the groundwork of earlier releases like 2008’s whimsical Polyfolk Dance EP and his R&B-centric Slowjams mix series.
Mohawke’s clever, genre-busting instrumentals like the Nintendo-powered “Shadows” and the sumptuously cinematic “Kettles” reflect the vast range of his sonic portfolio. “Ryderz” brilliantly flips soul singer D.J. Rogers’ 1973 “Watch Out for the Riders” into a seismic summertime banger nearly big enough to shake arenas to rubble. The perfect embodiment of a day hitting its peak, fan favorite “Scud Books” conjures up jubilation and grandeur for some the most anthemic electronic music in recent memory.
A studied collaborator, Mohawke enlists an eclectic handful of guests to accent his polished alt-R&B productions and help seize the day. He secures Miguel for the swirling and subdued “Deepspace,” and coaxes a distinctive mesmerizing performance from counterculture cantor Antony. With androgynous singer Irfane shining like the morning sun, lead single “Very First Breath” embodies pure pop pleasure, with bright-eyed vibes generated by a melodious medley of escalating synth squelches.
While many EDM acts see fit to turn in full-lengths comprised of glib club edits and overreaching pop exercises, Mohawke goes full-on kitchen sink with his influences yet somehow makes it all cohesive and, most importantly, artistically cogent, making for one heck of a listen — and one heck of a day.
