Bleep

The precursor to the much lauded “One-Three”, this was the debut album from Tadd Mullinix (later known as Dabrye) and the first full length release from Sam Valenti’s Ghostly International label. Both artist and label emerging from Ann Arbour, Michigan where Detroit House and Techno dominated all channels of electronic music, this release was testament to true maverick output.

A warm aural spectrum, complex classical arrangements and meticulously intricate rhythms makes this album date very well. Released in 2000, Winking Makes Faces doesn’t sound a day old.

Mullinix focuses on intricacies, himself stating that he uses melody and harmony in both conventional and non-conventional music theory, integrates Eastern and Western scales whilst also often deciding to ignore proper melodic structure.

With his later electronic boom-bap work under the moniker of Dabrye, and alongside the glitched-out style of Prefuse 73 and the ubiquitous influence of J Dilla’s drum programming; Mullinix can be cited as one of the major influences of the so-called “wonky” post hip-hop sound that is so prevalent today. Much more than just a stepping-stone though, “Winking Makes Faces” is an exercise in some of the most sublime electronic orchestration you are ever likely to hear.