RIYL: Leftfield, Faithless, Infected Mushroom
I’ve been in love with Hybrid ever since first hearing “Finished Symphony” on the soundtrack to the PS2 snowboarding game “SSX Tricky.” I’ve also been nearly unable to describe them. They’re dubbed “progressive beats” and “nu skool breaks” by electronic fans, but I have no idea what that actually means. And how could anyone classify Hybrid into one (sub)genre? Listening to the quiet majesty of “Finished Symphony” and the aggressive beats of “Can You Hear Me Now” off of their newest album Disappear Here is almost like listening to two completely different bands; the two tracks sound nothing alike.
And while it’s to be expected that a band might change sound over the course of their career, Disappear Here itself is full of radical genre changes from track to track. While the aforementioned “Can You Hear Me Now” is an intense dance number, it’s immediately followed up by “Green Shell Suit,” a hauntingly beautiful instrumental that would fit side-by-side with “Finished Symphony” on the band’s 1999 debut Wide Angle. About the only thing that’s consistent on Disappear Here are vocals by the band’s newest full-time member Charlotte James. Her distinctive voice serves well as a connective tissue between the wildly varying styles on the album, although some hardcore fans might complain that her near-constant presence on the album takes the band one step too close to a mainstream sound.
Regardless of what you might think of the extra vocals on Disappear Here, this is still Hybrid being Hybrid, going all over the place from one style to another and doing it a damn good job of it. It’s as cinematic and epic as their previous releases, and some tracks, like the pounding “Original Sin” and darkly ominous “Break My Soul” can stand up with the group’s best. This is just more “wow” from a group that can seemingly do no wrong. (Distinct’ive Breaks 2010)
