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Cover Art Bentley Rhythm Ace
Bentley Rhythm Ace
[Skint/Parlophone/Astralwerks]
Rating: 8.4

Former Pop Will Eat Itself bassist Richard March and his newfound friend, Mike Stokes (they met in Birmingham, England in 1995) -- not on the contrary to what you've heard, I'm sure -- are the makers of some e-lectronic, funk getdown thing that gets feet moving like Scooby and Shaggy in terrifying circumstances. "Hey," you say. "What's gonna distinguish these guys from every other e-lectronic, funk getdown thing that comes my way?" And that's a good question with a simple answer: it's the music.

Decidedly 100% more melodic than any other e-lectronic, funk getdown thing on the planet, this BRA concentrates on lifting your interest to ensure that there's never a sagging moment. From the get-go, you're grabbed by the collar and yanked into a world of crazy bass, stuttering breakbeats and echoing magic flutes. The madness runs its course over 78+ minutes during which you'll be either completely entranced or dancing your bloody arse off. There's only one catch: you have to like it.

-Ryan Schreiber

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RATING KEY
10.0: Indispensable, classic
9.5-9.9: Spectacular
9.0-9.4: Amazing
8.5-8.9: Exceptional; will likely rank among writer's top ten albums of the year
8.0-8.4: Very good
7.5-7.9: Above average; enjoyable
7.0-7.4: Not brilliant, but nice enough
6.0-6.9: Has its moments, but isn't strong
5.0-5.9: Mediocre; not good, but not awful
4.0-4.9: Just below average; bad outweighs good by just a little bit
3.0-3.9: Definitely below average, but a few redeeming qualities
2.0-2.9: Heard worse, but still pretty bad
1.0-1.9: Awful; not a single pleasant track
0.0-0.9: Breaks new ground for terrible
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