Butter (album)

In 2009, Hudson Mohawke signed to Warp Records, despite a very limited track record of official releases; in fact, the bulk of his releases were unofficial tracks and DJ mixes circulated on the Internet.[4] Butter is his debut album and second release on Warp following the 2008 Polyfolk Dance EP.[5] The album’s artwork was designed by Birchard’s friend Tom Scholefield (a.k.a. Konx-Om-Pax), with both working from a folder of influences they wanted to incorporate.[6] The album features collaborations with Dam-Funk, Nadsroic, and Olivier Daysoul, the latter an American singer who contributes to two tracks.[7]

Birchard described his recording setup as "very simple," explaining "I’m more interested in the equipment being usable and immediate, rather than spending loads of time tweaking things."[8] Most of the album was made in the audio program FruityLoops using free plug-ins.[8] Mohawke also used hardware such as an Ensoniq VFX and Roland W30 "for lots of vintage dancey sounds" as well as a Korg M50, and sampled his own MIDI programming.[7] He premiered the material at LA's Low End Theory, where it was received positively.[7]

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	80/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[9]
BBC Music	favorable[10]
Clash	7/10[11]
Drowned in Sound	8/10[2]
The Guardian	[12]
NME	7/10[13]
Pitchfork	6.7/10[14]
PopMatters	8/10[1]
Q	[3]
Resident Advisor	3.5/5[5]

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Butter received an average score of 80% based on 9 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[3]

AllMusic called it "A fearless scrap heap mutation that incorporates icebox IDM crunch, DayGlo synthesizer funk and, most notably, late-'80s/early-'90s R&B flourishes."[9] AJ Ramirez of PopMatters gave the album 8 stars out of 10, commenting that "While Butter's fascination with chaotic beats and sonic experimentalism fit right into the Warp aesthetic, the album is remarkably accessible, liable to inspire head-bobbing motions of approval."[1] The Guardian wrote that "listening to Butter can feel like eavesdropping on the future," adding that "It's like eating candyfloss and helium on a speeding rollercoaster: exhilarating and discombobulating in equal measure."[12]

• Jama, Zainab (December 1, 2009). "XLR8R's Favorites of 2009: Hudson Mohawke". XLR8R.
• Martin, Felicity (July 14, 2015). "Spotlight Special: Hudson Mohawke - Butter". Clash.

• Butter at Discogs (list of releases)