On paper it looks almost too good to be true: the premier percussion section of one of the most fascinating proprietors of ‘post rock’ teaming up with undergrounds hip hop’s most mercurial label to create an album of furious, drum driven glory. That’s what Bumps, a project that aligns the legendary skin bashers from Tortoise with Madlib’s Midas touching hip hop label Stones Throw, sets out to do on this self titled debut. By in large, the self-tilted Bumps is an album of purely instrumental drum tracks that rarely veers into two-minute territory, with each track simply presenting a variation on Tortoise drummers John McEntire, John Herdon and Dan Bitney’s tight, propulsive flexing of intricate rhythms and patterns. But what exactly is the intention of Bumps? Their intensive, intelligent structure is too complex to be just a beats and breaks record yet their linear stubbornness doesn’t really translate to the ‘album’ medium. As such, Bumps comes across as a kind of conceptual break beat record that is quite interesting and at times devastating, but ultimately suffers drastically from repetition despite its quasi avant-garde leanings.

As a set of DJ tools or loops for producers, these ditties would service any selector or knob twiddler in an ample fashion. Tortoise were known for their hard and tightly syncopated style, adding hard rock and hip hop flourishes to what was essentially a jazz structure. That rings through true on Bumps but minus the languid and expansive instrumentation of the rest of the band, and certainly minus any taints and hues from the Stones Throw’s inimitable stable of production talent. Thus to endue Bumps you must brace yourself for an hour’s worth of skeletal drumming, spider web structure and bombastic sonic exploits. First impressions from opener A Safe Balm are bright bursts of claustrophobia, as if you are in the kit rammed right inside the kick drum but the tight structure, rolling congas and thunderous toms set an energy level that never wavers. Craven almost sounds like a loop Diplo could throw to M.I.A. on a lazy day and Sniper Growl has a murky, blues feel underpinned by caustic distortion.

The Latin tinges and stop/start mechanics of the pulsating Nashira offer a devious and menacing funk as does the sexy, slithering Bin Johnston. The albums longest track is a real belter; Tryplmeade Gorsmatch has a ruthless groove and bears the most original disposition on the album, closer Swingland Hit shimmers along with icy screams of percussion and metallic whispers. All in all though it’s hard to get excited among so much intensive repetition, so distant and niche are the intensions of this project that you feel a little alienated and, well, bored. It is a shame such an opportunity turned out this bland and those looking to have there ears challenged should look elsewhere, but if you tinker around record stores endlessly looking for fresh breaks to liven up your productions then give Bumps a serious listen.