The Joker

Fatboy Slim approaches "The Joker" with the mischievous confidence of someone who knows exactly how ridiculous and irresistible they are being. Built around a looping blues-inflected guitar sample chopped and reassembled into something that lurches with a deliberately awkward swagger, the track radiates pure, unself-conscious fun. The sample work here is the personality — Norm Cook layers clashing textures with calculated sloppiness, letting the seams show, because the charm is partly in the imperfection. There is a wide grin embedded in the production: the record scratches, the bombastic horn stabs, the way elements seem to tumble over each other with gleeful disregard for elegance. The emotional temperature is pure euphoria of the unsophisticated variety — not transcendent, not searching, just the pleasure of a good hook done with maximum confidence. This belongs to the late-nineties big beat moment when Brighton's seafront clubs were producing records that made the whole club feel like one organism moving together. Reach for it at a house party when the mood needs lifting without ceremony, or on a Saturday afternoon when you want music that asks nothing of you except that you enjoy it completely.