Pursuit Grooves - Frantically Hopeful

Pursuit Grooves dazzled the alternative electronica community with an essence that ripped the heart out of r’n’b music and hyper-accelerated it for a generation and community of youths who weren’t so romantic and idyllic about life. In 'Fox Trot Mannerisms', behind the mesh of drum pads, loops and jittery timing remained a soulful and lush voice, offering a remedy to the gritty observations of life.
 
So for second offering Frantically Hopeful, Pursuit Grooves has gone deeper into the spirit of revolution, by assessing political and sociological dependence, and a focus on the way that our world is currently pushed hardest by technological advancement. Where she once concentrated on Human’s place in the world, she now critiques the forces and factors which drive our daily lives in this new concept album.
 
Following the same rhythmical structure, but cast into darker headspace, her mix of jittery footwork BPMs, off kilter drum timing and digital, hollow bass is flanked by fusing elements of hip hop, house and broken beat into a challenging mesh of musical creativity. But be warned, this hybrid album, with its juxtaposed focuses on the feet and the mind, is far from easy listening, and far from an all encompassing sound. The information society is consistently changing and following different split paths in terms of production and usage, and this is suited to the overall feel of the album. Dark and creeping tracks such as 'Transformation of Consciousness' and 'Mars is Rising' takes fingered bass-lines, tribal beats and a really slow rhythm, where opener 'Revolutionaries' takes the hyper-charged immediacy of juke and caustic, disjointed raps - mid album track 'Peace Talks' harks back to the longing, soft and ambient bass of previous work, soothed in by her sublime vocals.
 
Slipping between consciousness and reality with a harsh exterior and warm, longing interior, Pursuit Grooves’ new LP delves further than her previous work; if you can follow the non-linear path of the album, and to see just how warmly stretched computer based music can go, then grab this album. But if you’re expecting it to be handed on a plate to you, then forget it. It’s a grower that deserves time and dedication devoted to it.