The shuffling, one-two beat that dominates Triple P pumps like a piston, with sparks flying after every stroke. It’s a fitting focus for the Piper production duo of Wajeed and Saadiq, both Detroit natives. Their debut has been hailed as an example of next-level soul, but this vital and varied album works best when it remixes the past. “Now or Never” sizzles with a combination of double-dutch handclaps and soulful singing. The sexy R&B song “Fever” starts out like an Usher joint, but soon the joyful singing perfectly channels early Michael Jackson. If only other producers followed the Pipers’ lead.
Efterklang Springer
Originally released in 2003 on Efterklang’s own Rumraket label, Springer sounds like a Sigur Rós reissue. The sonic similarities between both bands’ approaches are so striking that Efterklang’s songs-all of which contain English lyrics-could easily be mistaken for translations of the Icelandic group’s originals. The twinkling bells, gloomy singing, and epic endings on songs like “Kloy Gun” follow the formula perfectly, the only deviation being a penchant for glitchy, electronic production reminiscent of Telefon Tel Aviv. That being said, Springer is a collection of lush, gorgeous songs. Any band, even Sigur Rós, would be happy to have recorded them.
Colleen The Golden Morning Breaks
Colleen is a person-Parisian Cécile Schott, a producer who cobbles together minute, meditative, and antiquated acoustics. But perhaps Colleen is also a personification. Perhaps Colleen is a little girl dreaming of an underwater string quartet featuring a harpsichord-plucking lobster, as in “Summer Water.” Or perhaps she‘s an adolescent, practicing to be a ballerina as she listens to a porcelain music box pirouetting in “The Heart Harmonicon.” Or maybe she‘s an adult, learning shiatsu massage and reiki healing in a wellness center‘s wind chime-filled courtyard, as in “The Happy Sea.” Maybe she‘s vacationing in Kyoto, enthralled in a Zen garden as a plaintive koto chimes, as the title track implies. Compared to the vague, nostalgic tape loop chimera that was her 2003 debut, Breaks is cohesive, evoking memory after sepia-toned memory of a well-traveled life.
Various Artists Afrique C‘Est Chic
Africa has an absurdly rich musical tradition, which makes it puzzling that this disc doesn‘t draw more on that continent‘s offerings. Though a solid enough house album, most of the 12 tracks here feature African vocals and occasional drumming, but little else African. Soul Khula‘s “Saturday Night”-a standout with a great bassline and spoken vocals-doesn‘t even have that much. And “Dingo” from Tiger Stripes has seen better incarnations elsewhere. With tracks like the laidback “Malombo” from Mahoota, this album isn‘t bad at all-just a bit misnamed.
Various Artists DJ Sneak: House of Om
DJ Sneak‘s excellent mixing and on-point programming create what sometimes seems so rare: a house album that you can‘t pigeonhole. Part of a new mix series on Om, this album gives Sneak the chance to show off mixing so smooth the disc sounds almost organic. The heavy use of syncopation among the selections, like Lil‘ Mark‘s “Life Is A Dream,” means these tracks don‘t just rely on a thumping 4/4 to keep one‘s interest. Other numbers-like Lawnchair Generals‘ “You Got to Go,” with sexy-but-not-oversexed female vocals-succeed just as well. Sneak‘s still sneaky, making sure the mix never loses its sense of fun.
Phoneheads Buddy Language
Newsflash: in Europe, they make videos for drum & bass songs. I know! It‘s fitting that they shot one for “Roll That Stone,” when you consider this double disc‘s crossover pretensions. Philipp Maiburg and Michael Scheibenreite make up Phoneheads; their style is in the realm of EZ Rollers, Hospital Records, and even Good Looking but they mix up tempos while striving to make an “album” for the electronica masses. By focusing on getting continental cred, they‘ve forgotten that-in the States at least-vocal lines like “Doin the do” just won‘t do.
Djosos Krost No Sign Of Bad
The loose but small collective that is Djosos Krost is lead by DJ Pharfar and DJ Filip, two stylee-ists who are equally adept at digital trickery as they are roots sorcery (think Stereotyp, Pole, Deadbeat, etc.). Djosos Krost hails from cold Copenhagen, so you’re not going to find the pressure cooker dub of Kingston, but what you will get is a near masterpiece that vacillates between Burning Spear-like history lessons (Jah Bobby speaks like a Nyabinghi elder) and more pum pum power (with Danish dancehall queen Little T) than has ever been heard this side of the North Sea.
Jay Haze Love For A Strange World
With aliases like the Architect and Dub Surgeon, minimal techno/house fans may already know him, but technically this is a debut release for Jay Haze. Who are we to judge one’s meds, but rumor has it (actually, a lie) that this electro-soul record was captured live in a k-hole. After getting dumped on “Why Did You Do It,” Haze croons “I was there for you”-it’s like Chaka Kahn’s “I Feel For You,” only with desperation rather than romance. In fact, most vocals here are delivered in that harmonized Detroit Grand Pubahs “Sandwiches” style-simultaneously slimy and sexy.
Silicone Soul Staring Into Space
Scotland’s mighty Soma imprint delivers yet again: former Slam protégés and overwhelming club faves Silicone Soul keenly display their forte for production, delivering elegant, driving deep house that plows through any dancefloor. Their stunning opener “When The Devil Drives” strongly recalls the sexy warmth of vintage Laurent Garnier; the remaining tracks feel distinctive and vibrant, pulsing with gleaming funk lines and an exceptionally tight rhythmic command. Enjoy shivers of tech-house delight on “Under A Werewolf Moon,” which quivers note by note up your spine.
Various Artists King Britt presents Jazzmental
At first glance, this collection of broken jazz joints seems a bit underwhelming-a two-year old Ennio Morricone remix and two cuts out of 12 from the same artist don‘t bode well-but Philly don King Britt delivers in the end. Aside from the expected (Bugz‘s sing-a-long anthem “Booty La La” and a super-smooth Basement Boys re-rub of Fertile Ground‘s “Living in the Light”), King comes correct with lesser known gems, including a rattling rap from Jneiro Jarel and Champion Soul plus “Our Time,” his own superb soul excursion with Lizz Fields.
