Super review by Cal Gibson, of The Secret Soul Society.

Portion Trigger features four freeform freakouts from the minds of Dave De Rose and friends, that locate themselves somewhere on the outskirts of town: a marginalised dub-space of broken promises and dreams turning slowly sour.

De Rose is a multi-instrumentalist who’s worked with Moloko and Rokia Traore amongst others, and here he’s assembled a working party of Jon Scott on drums, Henning Rohschürmann on modular synths, live sampling & FX, and Marius Mathiszik on guitar, loops, plus more FX. Together the fearless foursome make a big-hearted, boisterous collective that renders a blissed-out basement blues full of twists and turns and unexpected assignments.

It’s fun, fruitful collaborative goodness on opener Fictional Border-Crossings: pinning down the great lie that lies behind querulous nationalism and the pillaging of the land. The lies told by leaders and politicians, skewered for the vacuous nonsense that they are: guitars chiming their way to a hard-fought freedom under beats that stumble and fall. Art as release: a refusal to play by societal norms. Shades of Adrian Sherwood and Gary Clail perhaps, in amongst the sonic shrapnel. A message for the end times, coded and unashamed. Empires crumble and human vanity is sliced wide open. We’ll all end up as a sea of photons after all.

The title cut is darker, harsher, squelchy and blasted upon the heath. Drums colliding with electronics and frazzled bass licks: tumultuous, scary-ass vibes for hipsters hopped up on Hunter S. Thompson. A grave-yard howl for the worst minds of our generation. Destroyed by madness.

New In Town lightens up, rubbery and playful – wonky dub-blues for a spaghetti carbonara western. The bass is the star here, lolloping its way to Valhalla, sozzled and unbowed. Gently does it, after the late night theatrics that came before. Melodies inching in, nervous but keen to pitch up to the general shenanigans. It’s the kind of cut that will be rocking mixtapes for years to come. A little gem of hushed beauty.

…And then we’re out with Free At Last, bass again front and centre, dubscapes pulsing with life and yearning for a better way. Low end theories from forward-thinking bluesmen, guitars skittering in the distance, messy as hell, and twice as nice for it. There’s a warmth here too amongst the heaviness, a smiling willingness to bend the rules any which way the musicians choose. It’s loose, and easy, but very cleverly constructed.

De Rose and friends then, making a holy devotional racket that hits the spot and then some. Flying free of any category, this is music-making with love and abandonment at its heart. More of this kind of stuff, please Dave.

Rave At Your Fictional Borders’ Potion Trigger can be ordered directly from Dave De Rose Records.