Prefuse 73Security Screenings Warp RecordsThree stars out of five

There is little doubt that Prefuse 73 is an innovative act.

When Prefuse 73’s Scott Herren blew the world away with his unique brand of tweaked, stuttering hip-hop, he not only merited his own genre-“glitch-hop”-but changed instrumental hip-hop forever.

Five years later, Herren is still pulling tricks out of the same old bag-and they might even be the same old tricks. Security Screenings is made of the same fragmented fabric as every other Prefuse album-without improvement or decline.

The beats on Security Screenings, like Herren’s other efforts, achieve a stunning smoothness out of their awkwardness. Herren’s signature mosaics are constructed out of a variety of textures-spoken word, computer glitches and instrumentation.

Herren knows glitch-hop; but how many glitch-hop albums do we need?

Security Screenings, as gorgeous as it is, begs that question, as it blends in with every other Prefuse 73 record.

It becomes as obvious as ever: Scott Herren needs a new shtick.

Because of its lack of distinctiveness, Security Screenings is the best album you’ll never listen to-especially if you’ve spent time with any of Prefuse’s other albums.

As an innovator, Scott Herren changed hip-hop, but only a renovation could save his career.