DJ Food

After a thousand sweet Solid Steel mixes and podcasts, The Search Engine delivers a fatal blow to disappointment from high expectations. The first full-length since 2000's Kaleidoscope from one of the biggest names on the superlative Ninja Tune roster is, indeed, a cool record. That's not to say it's perfect. Much of its material was previously released on a series of three brilliant EPs: One Man's Weird is Another Man's World (2009); The Shape of Things That Hum (2009); and Magpies, Maps & Moons (2011). It's a little weird to hear it all in a different, arguably overworked, context. But that being said, DJ Food is a vehicle for the tasteful Strictly Kev and his contacts list, and there is a lot of raw talent at play. Their collected efforts ultimately work in their favour. The style is mature, intensely smoky and cinematic, recalling trip-hop, gamelan, vintage propaganda, film noir, sci-fi and stag films. Though a touch disjointed, at times, The Search Engine is a trip. Buy the ticket, and take the ride.