Photograph: Timothy Saccenti
As the producer most associated with the emergent talent of A$AP Rocky, Clams Casino had a big 2012. Coming on like Enya after 15 blunts, all new age melodies and huge woozy drums, Clams (his real name is Michael Volpe) had an interesting sonic aesthetic. Four years on and a combination of pan pipes and big beats no longer sound so fresh, so Clams has done what any producer would on his debut album and drafted in features. There are rappers: Rocky, Vince Staples and, on three different tracks, Lil B. Staples in particular with his tricksy, tumbling flow, proves a perfect accompaniment to a track of pipes, birdsong and distorted squelches. More interesting though are new departures into collaboration with singers. Into the Fire with Mikky Ekko is stultifyingly bland, but Back to You with Kelly Zutrau is a piece of beguiling, enigmatic R&B, while Future Islands’ Samuel T Herring uses the platform provided by Casino’s low tempo to turn out a stab at a 2k16 Tom Waits. More a showcase of his production wares than an album, this collection still suggests Clams might produce a pearl yet.
