- In the past two years, Dennis McFarlane's releases have cemented his princely status among a new generation of producers. Last year, Berceuse Heroique reissued "This Ain't Tom And Jerry," a husky broken beat tune produced as Cousin Cockroach in 2002, and new music arrived via FaltyDL's Blueberry Records and Eglo, the latter in collaboration with keyboardist Kaidi Tatham. In 2015, he was signed by Rush Hour and put out another record with Tatham on Theo Parrish's Sound Signature. It all paved the way for The More Things Stay The Same, the first solo Dego album in four years.
McFarlane has reached a reflective point in his career. "I'm at that age where I've seen it all," he recently told FACT. He's watched genres go through the full cycle, from gestation to peak saturation, disappearing before reemergence a few years later. Through his various projects he's helped push those genres—jungle, drum & bass, broken beat, whatever—in challenging new directions.
A key difference between The More Things Stay The Same and McFarlane's previous solo album, 2011's A Wha' Him Deh Pon?, is its narrower focus in terms of style and vocal collaborators (Sharlene Hector's voice appears on most tunes). For someone whose musical range is so broad, this self-imposed structure is probably a good thing. The album, like a lot of broken beat in general, is simultaneously accessible and almost overwhelmingly dense. The music is upfront, slippery and cluttered, with breathless drum patterns and basslines, but it's also rooted in melody and soulful singing.
There are moments of startling prettiness, like the live keys on "Help Me Out," the wonderful piano line on "It Don't Get No Better" and the pattering bongos on "Own It." "We've Been Here Before" is a high point—thrilling, jazz-fueled broken beat that manages to capture the unique feeling of summertime in London. Sometimes, however, McFarlane's arrangements can be impenetrable, like a heady jazz-fusion record. Fans of Dego will revel in these complexities, but it'll be a harder sell to anyone less interested in his sound. McFarlane refuses to pander to prevailing trends on The More Things Stay The Same, which has always been his way. He's trying to make music that's timeless, not current.
Tracklist01. Feminist Meetings
02. Greed & Power
03. It Don't Get No Better
04. Keep It Moving Right
05. Own It
06. Shine A Light
07. Star Track 7
08. The Middle Ground feat. TY
09. We've Been Here Before
10. The Stronghold Of Lithius
11. The Writings Clear
12. Help Me Out
13. With Love