I think it’s that gorgeous melody played on a harpsichord – or is it a hammered dulcimer? – that makes this Four Tet track so special. It lends the tune, from his 2017 album New Energy, a kind of medieval madrigal vibe that chimes so well with the sleepy beats.
And it’s typical of the way Kieren Hebden combines opposites in his work: old and new, organic and electronic, abstract but melodic, experimental yet accessible, folk music and club culture.
I’d almost forgotten that when the Putney boy started out in the early 2000s he incorporated acoustic guitars in a sound that was dubbed “folktronica” before moving into more sample-based sounds.
This beautiful melody sounds even better live – where it’s much longer – but I’m not going to post one of the live recordings on YouTube because they are filled with extraneous chatter from the crowd.
And hearing someone gasp to their friends about how “amazing” it is doesn’t make it more amazing. Even though it is.