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***Years in the making, Peeping Tom is noise-rock renaissance man Mike Pattonís most accessible effort since his days in Faith No More. Like the landmark í60s thriller that inspired its name, Peeping Tomís modus operandi is devoid of physical intimacy. Patton wrote each song with a theoretical collaborator in mind, hoping his musical dream team would return the compliment by contributing to the finished tracks. The final 11-song opus features a lengthy and refreshingly incongruous cast of guests. ìItís an exotic way of working for someone accustomed to a band environment,î Patton says. ìIt was charming, really. None of the usual Animal House stuff. Instead of swapping spit and underwear, we were swapping files.î Lack of face-to-face interaction didnít keep long distance collaborators from turning in exceptional performances: Norah Jonesís lascivious ìSucker,î Kool Keithís ìGetawayî and Massive AttackísîKill The DJî are intense and passionate as anything a live band environment could have produced. The album also includes contributions from Amon Tobin, Bebel Gilberto, Dub Trio, Kid Koala and several of Pattonís Bay Area running buddies, such as Dan ìthe Automatorî Nakamura (who teams with Rahzel on ìMojoî), and anticonís Jel, Odd Nosdam and Doseone. The end result is an utterly unique multi-genre/multi-artist listening experience, one that would ultimately have to be classified as a pop record ó a Mike Patton pop record ó but a pop record nonetheless. |