Nothing Lasts…but Nothing is Lost by Shpongle
2005, Twisted Records, 20 tracks at 1 hr, 7 min.
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RATING: 35 out of 50

What to make of Shpongle? Besides, of course, the accurate response of “lol u listen to Shpongle?” On Nothing Lasts, there is ample cause to perhaps throw away this retort, and to not be embarrassed by Shpongle. In place of eleven-minute trance epics that lead to ‘neo-consciousness’ or the like, there are twenty short tracks, each one less of a ‘thump thump thump’ Goa extravaganza and more of Aphex-like techno vignettes.

Do not come to Nothing Lasts expecting the British duo to be hardcore techno wunderkind, however. The pieces here retain their “shpongality” via goofy vocal samples (“Outer Shpongolia”), mystically-obsessed titles (“The Stamen of the Shamen”), and placid guitar (“Falling Awake”). Yet the dabbles into techno territory remain the centerpiece. The beats are jerky, distorted, cut-up, playful, chaotic—it’s aptitude masked by lack of pretension, a trademark of the most revered electronic maestros (Wagon Christ, for example).

The bedlam contained within is not exactly ‘danceable’, though I suppose this keeps in line with Shpongle’s ‘higher goal’—magically-imbued consciousness or something, I don’t know, some Middle Eastern shit. The flow of the album is seamless, and accordingly it operates on some degree of ambience. Periodic bursts of high energy—the beguiling brass on “The Stamen of the Shaman”—are welcome, and while the album runs a bit long it doesn’t run unbalanced.

Maybe I’m just impatient, but my main complaint about this album is its length. It’s nice to fall asleep to, but once you put conscious effort towards listening it seems something of a chore. The beats squibble, squabble, and flutter, yes; but one pair of ears can only take so much tomfoolery. My first thought on hearing this album was, “Wow, sounds like Digimon World 3.” And it does. So if you’re in the mood for video game music, then Nothing Lasts will be nothing short of a gem. Otherwise, you may want to take this piecemeal, at every meal, and with water—a big glass, since you’ll be swallowing a whole lot of haberdashery.