Rating:   1 Ratings     12345  

Dat’r Turn Up The Ghosts Hush Records

      Going into Turn Up The Ghosts having no clue who Dat’r are is a lot like getting punched in the face. Regardless of the circumstance, fault, chance, or reasoning a sting wells up that stuns you as much as it puts your brain on the static channel for a few moments. Luckily for you Dat’r is worth coming back for more.

      Paul Alcott and Matt Dabrowiak make music in an alternate universe that is located somewhere between a dusty funk 45 and "Dance, Dance Revolution." With more electronics than a Best Buy grand opening these two Binary Dolls tap into everything from your standard synth / lap top config to converted video game controllers. And it’s good stuff. Their combination of break-neck beats (played on kit by Alcott) and lyrical quirk work with the BPM-fest of 0’s and 1’s whizzing by in every direction.

Turn Up The Ghosts is packed with beats and grooves that are only possible in that rare case were live instruments and a butt-load of electronics synch up and extend into something beyond formula. Each track buzzes with an acoustic motor and electric accelerator that never lack in horsepower. The vocals approach sound system diction and feature clever lines when their phrases aren’t stuck on repeat. In essence this is a fun side project for two guys whose band has a throng of hometown fans and a few albums under their belt, but this is an effort that could survive fully upon its’ own momentum. If Dat’r happened in the 90’s they’d have been gods for the last decade, but in the scope of new millennial dance music they fit into frame just fine. They have a robotic pulse, but a beating heart and dance floors the world over should be able to connect with that instantly.

-Joel Armato 05/31/07