During the COVID-19 lockdown of 2020,
Tom Jenkinson was able to devote more time to creating music without distraction. When live music began resuming the following year, he unveiled material that felt like a more extreme extension of 2020's
Be Up a Hello, a technicolor head rush composed on some of the gear he made his first music with.
Squarepusher's 2022 sets at festivals like Bang Face and Dekmantel were particularly unhinged and ravey, with complex light displays accompanying truly intense and bewildering performances. Based on these live shows and
Dostrotime's first single, a giddy acidcore thrasher titled "Wendorlan," one would expect the album to be the hardest, craziest
Squarepusher album to date. These expectations are immediately subverted with opener "Arkteon 1," a clean, gentle solo guitar reflection that could've easily been released on
Windham Hill. He returns to this meditative space with two sequels, including a more detached, free-floating finale, while "Heliobat" is a solemn downtempo piece recalling the previous album's "Detroit People Mover." Most of the remainder of
Dostrotime is on the more ecstatic side, but none of the songs are alike. "Enbounce" starts out recalling the stark iciness of early classic "Tundra," then goes through a massive slow build with accelerating snares, acid synths, and melodic guitars. "Duneray" is a direct flashback to early,
Spymania-era
Squarepusher, with contorted Amen breaks drilling away under spacy synth pulsations. "Akkranen" starts out recalling
Jenkinson's all-too-rare dub excursions, but with more electro-acoustic dynamics, while also subtly introducing old-school rave stabs. Then the breakbeats explode and it just escalates into a psychedelic terror scene. "Stromcor" is a fun workout showcasing
Jenkinson's virtuosic bass guitar playing, then "Domelash" goes for absurdity overload, with comically knotty drum edits and tempo wind-ups. As a whole,
Dostrotime is easily one of the most well-rounded
Squarepusher albums, displaying his range as an artist while housing some of his nuttiest tracks. ~ Paul Simpson
