here is something strangely alluring about Musipal. It isn’t an album that stands too far from other Ninja Tune releases, or many other electronic albums for that matter. At least, it doesn’t really appear that way at first. Upon an initial listen, many of the vocal samples, touches of vinyl scratches, and beats sound very well done, albeit not very distinctive. In fact, at first, much of the inherent craziness of Luke Vibert’s previous albums recorded under the moniker Wagon Christ seem to have been glossed over with a duller, more produced sheen. However, repeated listens reveal that the sense of humor of Wagon Christ has become a little slicker, and perhaps a bit more subtle.


“The Premise” opens up the album with a seamless barrage of vocal samples from dozens of different sources, all held together by a relatively simple hip-hop beat. Essentially, as the title indicates, it sets up the album’s premise. From the strung together vocal samples, one can gather a few things: this album is about fun and also about not taking things very seriously. It’s a simple track, that maybe goes on a bit long, but it serves its purpose well. From there, we dive straight into “Bend Over” which belies the supposedly fun and lighthearted nature of the album. A stuttering bass line and a barely incomprehensible man’s voice garbled digitally carry the track, as do some dark atmospherics. However, the weird thing about the song is, that for all of this "darkness" on the track, it’s accented in parts by a very lighthearted flute. Is confusion Vibert’s idea of fun?


In many respects, the rest of the album follows a similar approach. Similar in the sense that it plays a game of confusion with the listener. The remainder of the first six tracks (up to the title track) work within this relatively ominous format. It is subtle, though. Small off putting variations (for example, nonsense babblings and animal noises in “Thick Stew”) are added to the mix, creating a vaguely alien atmosphere fairly often. The first half continues in this fashion, continually playing with the listener’s expectations. Eventually, one comes to the realization that the confusion and ominous nature of much of the first side is Vibert’s way of playing with the listener. In many respects, it is merely a game. And once this realization is reached, much of the album’s humor really comes to light.


The second half of the album continues in a similar fashion, expect for two qualities. First of all, the second half is considerably weaker than the first. Tracks like “Boney L” and “Tomorrow Acid” fail to really inspire. In the case of the latter, some interesting techniques are present, but the annoying qualities far outweigh the positives. Vibert overuses his LFO (low frequency oscillation) controls and the constant intoning of “A-C-I-D” is nothing but irritating. Despite the weaknesses of the second half, the playfulness is still present. Instead of confusing the listener with the contrast of lighthearted and dark, he plays with the listener in a far more mundane manner. Simply put, many of the tracks in the second half use mere audio tricks to create a hallucinatory feeling, at times taking a very straightforward beat and blurring it. Admittedly, it is well done, good for what it is. Unfortunately it is not nearly as interesting or as subtle as the first few tracks. There are highlights, however. This more straightforward approach works wonders on “Cris Chana”, a catchy, danceable song driven by a positively infectious rolling bass line.


With Musipal, Luke Vibert has not created anything particularly innovative. Much of this ground has already been covered better numerous times by the likes of DJ Shadow, Amon Tobin, DJ Food, and others. But, none of the weak portions really undercut the strengths of the album. Musipal is ultimately rewarding because of the charm, brought in by its playfulness. That sort of quality invites the listener to delve a little bit deeper, and soon enough, you’ll be sucked in too.