Variety is the spice of life according to Kieran Hebden.

“I guess it’s a mixture of loads of styles of music, everything from hip-hop, jazz, techno to folk music. It’s instrumental and it’s all made on computers, it is electronic music, but it doesn’t sound like that.” Kieran Hebden is talking about Four Tet, his electronic solo project often referred to in the press as ‘Folktronica’ - “It’s just something to enable the listener to group things,” he shrugs.

Rounds is his third solo album, following his free jazz debut Dialogue and the folky Pause LP. “I think it’s more ambitious,” he reckons. “The previous two albums specialised more in certain areas, you can tell a lot more of what I was listening to at the time. I think this one has moved on into more of my own sound.”

The album’s title comes from his sister who told him how she and some college friends had been singing rounds. “As well being really kind of dorky I thought it was funny. But as she was telling me this story I thought: Rounds - that’s the name of the album. It seemed totally relevant; a round is all about repetition and phasing, which is the essence of what I’ve been doing since I’ve been making music.”

As a result, Rounds is an organic fusion of warm electronica, and Hebden has pulled off that difficult trick of making sample-based music with real emotion. Live, he performs alone using laptops to create real-time improvisation. “If you come to the show you hear rhythms and melodies that you hear on the record, but everything’s just pushed further. Every show is different. It’s all very spontaneous,” he explains. “I think there’s the bit of DJ in me that reacts very strongly to the audience. If I play something that gets a big reaction from the crowd that excites me and I probably head off more that way. I like that - what’s going on in the audience is total relevant to what I’m doing.”

Kieran likes to keep things varied. He still works with his band Fridge, DJs anything from free jazz to speed garage, and has remixed The Super Furry Animals and the Kings of Convenience, amongst others. If that weren’t enough, he’s currently working with Beth Orton on ideas for her next album. “I like every few days to be working on some thing different, usually with a different musical style. I think it keeps me fresh and I don’t get bored of what I’m doing,” he says. “I’m hoping I’ve made an album that people will say ‘wow that last one was amazing, and this one is amazing in a completely different way’.” It seems likely that they will. Matt Walton 02 May 03

Four Tet - Rounds, released 05 May 03 on Domino.