Comical Mischief - CHIMERA

​Comical Mischief

​CHIMERA
self-released; 2015

3.5 out of 5

By Ted Rogen
​

Comical Mischief is a producer from California who has a style that I became familiar with about fifteen years ago. On his release CHIMERA two artists kept coming to mind - Prefuse 73 and The Avalanches. In fact I feel like the beats were reminiscent of Prefuse 73 while the way he implanted samples certainly has the flavor of The Avalanches.

Anyway you look at it CHIMERA is a long journey with twenty-three tracks and even though I thought it may have worked better around fifteen songs with a more parochial focus it still is a ride that is quite enjoyable. There are times when I thought the samples were too long and would have preferred he get to the beats and music sooner.  For example the end of “Ode 2 Shaolin” closes with a sample of one of Wu Tang's members talking which then bleeds into another sample of song, which then transition into the next song which starts off with more samples.

The best moments are when he locks onto a groove that will hypnotize you while also having an undeniable energy. Take for instance “Black Hill Zone” which is a smooth ride but also changes things up quite often to keep things interesting. 

Mischief cuts and splices on “Gxd of Mischief” while “Hot Sign” is a lounge-y if somewhat jagged cut that invokes the senses as it shifts and morphs into different forms. There are other songs such as “A Change Is Gonna Come” which takes a lead vocal and cuts it up while soulful music makes you want to move.

CHIMERA is a success because there is vast palette of tones and textures that Mischief utilizes but the album still feels as if it was torn from the same cloth. That is no easy task especially when you are using disparate samples from anywhere you can think. I would have liked to hear a couple more tracks that stuck out but I think Mischief was ultimately going for a flow on this album that you can appreciate from beginning to end.

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