The second Crossover LP benefits from a broader, richer production palette thanks to the addition of fellow Gigolo artist Matt “Mount” Sims behind the scenes-the cheap-sounding synths that blighted their debut are nowhere to be heard this time out. The duo‘s range of influences also appears to have been extended in the interim between albums-Italo horror soundtracks have clearly shaped a number of the tracks. As with many of their Gigolo contemporaries, the lyrics still occasionally grate, but perseverance proves rewarding.
Boozoo Bajou Dust My Broom
Many producers have attempted to mesh Delta blues with dub beats, usually with little success. Too often, the results rely on a drab timidity from one side or the other-no grit in their blues or ghost in their dub. On Dust My Broom, German electronic spliff rollers Boozoo Bajou create a rare balance: they find the dub in Sonny Boy Williamson and create post-modern classics with help from toaster U-Brown and soul legend Willie Hutch. As an experiment, Dust My Broom is an unmitigated success; as an album, it‘s a late-night classic.
Zuco 103 Whaa!
Take the title as a passionate cry of joy, or a question in the form of an imperative. Zuco 103‘s new disc can only be expressed in semi-nonsensical verbalizations: part Afrobeat/bossa nova drive, part electronic thump, part soul-injected jazz funk rave-up, and part studio dub workout (complete with two typically unpredictable contributions from Lee “Scratch” Perry). The Amsterdam-via-Brazil group is better known for more direct electro-bossa; while that‘s still here-along with Lilian Vieira‘s sunny vocals-Whaa! proves Zuco capable of exploring a range of musical possibilities with both youthful energy and intimate subtlety.
Various Artists Soul Heaven Presents Blaze
Sometimes “just what you expected” is exactly what you want: for example, the hands-in-the-air, keep-the-summer-alive vibe fest of Soul Heaven Presents Blaze. The venerable New Jersey DJ/production duo digs up and mixes two CDs of deep, soulful, Latin-and Afro-tinged house from the likes of Jon Cutler, Louie Vega, Truby Trio, and, of course, Blaze. Those seeking surprises or new directions will be sorely disappointed, but Shelter-heads searching out another night of sweat-drenched healing will give thanks for this minor paradise.
Slum Village Prequel To A Classic
Detroit-based Slum Village has gone through many incarnations over the past decade, but emerges fit and trim for their latest “mixtape” collection. Calling it so is odd since every track is by T3 and Elzhi, but no matter-they continue a smart blend of intelligent street slang fused with R&B hooks, jazzy synth lines, and, of course, juiced up and heady bass. Prequel is a fitting title, as nothing on the record progresses beyond what has kept them at the helm of underground headnods. If you‘ve enjoyed thus far, this is more of the same-“classic” as in “old,” not necessarily “necessary.”
Various Artists Bar Bhangra
GlobeSonic DJ Fabian Alsultany compiles a finely mixed bhangra compilation for the States, bringing the hectic Punjabi stylings of London and India to American dancefloors. This seamlessly threaded 15-track compilation is an archeological finding in future music where hip-hop-based production is combined with dhol and tumbri. Including Panjabi MC-who shot this style overseas with his Jay-Z collaboration-as well as bass-heavy cuts by the MIDIval PunditZ, TJ Rehmi, and Swami, Bar Bhangra serves as both welcome introduction and sonic document of what is to come.
Trio Exclusiv International Standards
This Viennese combo-drummer Mex Wolfsteiner, trumpeter Richie Klammer, and guitarist Franz Reisecker (with multi-instrumentalist Martin Zrost) invokes nostalgia with accomplished disco-jazz on International Standards, using guest vocalists to further invigorate grooves that are anything but dusty. Their clean, funky production segues seamlessly from aperitifs in the hotel lobby (where Austrian Louie Austen channels Sinatra over the car-chase frenetics of “Honalee”) to the handclap-filled dancefloor of G. Rizo‘s “A Time to Feel” to a nightcap in the leisure suite with Terry Callier, soulful and robust as ever on “Slo-Mo” and its dub redux. International Standards is exclusive swank that the masses should hear.
Colette Hypnotized
Previously showcasing her pipes on albums Our Day and In the Sun, classically-trained Colette gives her vocals center stage on her artist debut, Hypnotized. Doused at times in classic, funky house and electro rhythms, her lovely soprano unfortunately can‘t elevate the album above pop lite. From the rainy-day groove of “A Little More,” where she sings “You think it‘s easy/To sit and wait for you/You think I deserve/All the things you do,” to the ballad-ish “The One,” where she pines for love, Colette‘s lyrical and musical combinations are a bit too diary-literal. Ultimately, Hypnotized is the auditory equivalent of reading chick lit.
Alias & Ehren Lillian
On 2003‘s Muted, Alias (nee Brendon Whitney) brought some of the thickest and certainly most blissed-out beats to Anticon‘s roster of “lap-hop” experimentalists. Brother Ehren was impressed, and offered to contribute his skills with the flute, saxophone, and clarinet to sessions for the instrumental Lillian (named after their grandmother). An extension of Muted‘s shoegazey aesthetic, the album‘s textures are warmed by Ehren‘s jazzy improvisations on tracks like “Back And Forth,” where clickety-clacks and fuzzy guitars escalate to a gorgeously spazzed-out climax. “52nd & West” is likewise made light and giddy by reed instruments.
Various Artists Tsunami Relief
Proceeds from this album of unreleased tracks from the micro and tech-house arenas of Deutschland benefit an orphanage in Indonesia affected by last year‘s tsunami tragedy, rendering Sascha Funke‘s “Tears On My Pillow” bittersweet despite its clinical execution. If Andre Galluzzi & Guido Schneider‘s “Survivor” is the dizzy sound of sifting through the rubble, Dirt Crew‘s “Let‘s Get it Done” is an upbeat insistence to begin rebuilding structures and lives. With Richie Hawtin, Swayzak, and Ellen Allien in tow, these are consoling sentiments from not the most comforting of genres.
