From the darkside of Philly cometh this EP of haunted house drum & bass. Dstar and Mason turn out somewhat forgettable darkside rides for Pantera fans, but “Standstill” (by all three under the name Swarm) is a scissor-kicking synth workout with pretty vocals. “Philly” is the anthem, a vintage Metalheadz style slammer with Mentasm bass, crispy snare rides and plenty of roughneck hip-hop flavor. Tuff!
Baitercell & Schumacher Vs. Aquasky What‘s Down Low
Aquasky‘s Black Noise imprint is dedicated to the flashing-strobe-and-dilated-pupils side of the scene, but their production talents keep the tunes a step above. “What‘s Down Low” pounds the floor with pressure-cooked Amens, robot noises, and vocals that have been Ginsu-sliced; “Red Out” is a high-energy stepper with a silly sample, but plenty of glowstick power.
Machine Drum Bidnezz
Travis Stewart‘s third and best album as Machine Drum proves why IDM-centric hip-hop heads adore him. Without coming off as a biter, he melds the best traits of Boards Of Canada, Push Button Objects, Autechre, and Dabrye into tracks of elegant complexity and Ph(LS)D-level beat programming. Bidnezz displays Stewart‘s virtuosic use of DSP, scrambling hip-hop‘s DNA and sprinkling equal doses of glamour and grit into its rhythm matrices. Some hip-hop producers‘ tracks are simply too bizarre and disorienting to spit over–such is the case with Machine Drum‘s alien-funk creations. Long may he warp hip-hop‘s templates.
Jesu Jesu
Jesu finds ex-Godflesh mastermind Justin Broadrick getting reacquainted with his inner guitar hero, with chest-caving help from drummer Ted Parsons (Swans, Prong). Akin to bands like Isis and Pelican, Jesu rumbles and bristles into the new wave of heavy guitar fog generators, swirling metal, shoegazer and grunge tonalities into pulverizing shitstorms of sound. Nevertheless, Jesu is Broadrick‘s most melodic project yet. His songs stive for ascension and redemption, but they‘re burdened by woebegone.
Various Artists Clicks & Cuts 4
After flirting with bankruptcy, Mille Plateaux Media returns with more tantalizing lab experiments. Clicks & Cuts 4 features 16 tracks by C&C standbys and interesting newcomers. Slightly more than half the disc consists of dance tracks (by Frank Elting, Eight Frozen Modules, Ultra-Red, Hakan Lidbo, Ido Gouvrin); the producers set up obstacles for themselves so things don‘t flow too smoothly, creating fascinating friction that enlivens ye olde 4/4. The other half of the album contains mostly involving, eerie headphone ambience that elaborates on the C&C template, with Tilman Ehrhorn and Twerk bringing in some welcome jazz spice. This is a big improvement over 2002‘s Clicks & Cuts 3.
Afronaut Golpe Duro Calinda
Orin “Afronaut” Walters delivers an infectious modern Afro-Latin/broken beat hybrid. From a live recording session in Puerto Rico amongst native musicians, percussive elements and uplifting chants fronted by Son del Batey, Orin and collaborator Daz-I-Kue have crafted a classic dancefloor bomb. The dead are dancing, the gods are crazy and the musical wrecking crew here will inflict damage.
Delgui Boogie Bridge
Along with musical partner Pablo Delgado, Gerd has earned massive respect for some of the most soulful and bumpy remixes around. As “Boogie Bridge” finds vocalist Marilyn David in badass chant mode, Gerd‘s signature edgy nu-funk ensures warmth here. With a more house-influenced mix rounding the disc out, Delgui is about to draw the groove line in the sand.
Doujah Raze New York City
Doujah Raze is back with the uptempo and danceable “New York City,” an ode to his current home produced by Germany‘s Shuko; scratches courtesy of the incomparably funky Mista Sinista complement Raze‘s effortless flow. The MC pays homage to his home state on “Virginia” and is joined by Thad Reid and Born Unique. The production and scratching duties are handled by Disko Dave, who laces Raze with a mellow, introspective track-perfect for a little nostalgic reminiscing.
Capleton Reign of Fire
In a singles-based genre like dancehall, cohesive albums are hard to come by, but Capleton pulls it off. The Prophet fills the 20-track offering with rootsy selections like the lead single, “That Day Will Come,” a cautionary tale of the rapture. “Ton Load” and “Steppin‘ Up” stick to conscious themes as well, but he rides hot bashment riddims like Chrome, Red Alert, and Kopa, too. Unlike his past releases, he steers clear of even a single “batty boy” reference; instead, it‘s up to the listener to determine who‘s on the receiving end of the fire in tracks like “Burn Dem.”
Sound Providers The Blessin‘
Sound Providers deliver their usual warm jazzy sound on “The Blessin‘,” but Blest‘s urgent vocal delivery and the sharp snares, combined with Soulo‘s deft scratching, give the song a harder edge than the laid-back vibe they‘ve earned a reputation for. The B-side, “Who Said What,” is a tale of life‘s stresses over a nice funky guitar loop and more nice phrase scratching from Soulo, this time cutting up lines from EPMD, KRS-One, De La Soul, Sadat X, Q-Tip and more.
