Two drum & bass legends come together to create the smooth “No Joke” featuring full vocals from Chiara. A complete contrast on the flip, “Baltimore” is without question the hardest tune Photek has ever released! Look out for the half-time breakdown matched with a dangerous reece bassline.
Keaton & Verse Redemption
Keaton debuts his very own label with two devastating tunes. “Redemption,” produced with MC Verse, is a positive minimal roller with plenty of dubbed out effects and energy for the floor. The flip sees Keaton & Hive crafting one of the most lethal tunes this year. A mix-friendly and slightly uplifting intro leads to a sinister frenzied drop. “No Hope?” raises the bar and the roof.
Juju Thunder EP
A San Francisco hometown hero lends his talents to the established V Recordings label, sending up an excellent EP of dubwise selections. “Thunder” puts things in motion-heavy and dubby; sick horns roll over a juicy bassline in “Skylarking;” and “Bag O Wire” features dub samples with a fluid amen break. “Sahara Run” concludes the journey with another thick bassline and hypnotizing vocal.
Oktober Projekt:Building
A street-savvy lyricist from the Bronx, Oktober has been on the grind for the past four years, releasing several excellent 12-inches and a pair of small-run CDs. On his official debut full-length, he hits us with 16 solid tracks that showcase his verbal gifts over gritty, sample-fueled production. “NYC,” the lead single, is a dope hometown anthem, “Four Korners” channels Nasty-era Nas and J-Live pops up for the video game dedication “Reset The Game.” One of the year’s best albums; look for this cat to be large very soon.
dub-L Day Of The Mega Beast
Best known for his work with DJ JS-1 (the Ground Original and Claimstake comps), and Aesop Rock (he produced Music For Earthworms), dub-L is clearly a beat-man on the rise. On this record, he hooks up with a vast assortment of NYC indie all-stars, including C-Rayz Walz on the apocalyptic “Deep Impact,” GM Grimm for the bounce-driven “The Life I Lead,” and O.G. Percee-P on the hard-knock tale “Ghetto Rhyme Story.” Some of the lesser-known emcees fail to impress, but L’s tracks, mostly of the sparse drums/weird keyboards variety, hold things together well.
Sebastian Kramer Principles & Tactics
The East German techno wiz kid likes it dark and heavy. After only a handful of 12″ releases, Sebastian Kramer unloads a whopping 60 minutes of mechanical repetition and four-to-the-floor hypnosis on Mark Broom’s Pure Plastic label. Keenly inspired from the Detroit sound, each droning track drives through sparse stringy synth pads and relentlessly heady, borderline tribal-y percussion–ranging from drum-laden walls of bass to loopy, shuffly big-room techno. Even though the three closing bonus tracks (not included on the vinyl version) offer a deeper and more leftfield touch, Principles is merely for the gung-ho techno DJ.
Roni Size Return To V
Brace yourself drum & bass hounds (what’s left of you), because Roni Size is back with a new full-length. Return to V re-sows the dark ‘n’ deadly seeds he planted in ’93 when he got started droppin’ bombs on Bryan Gee and Jumping Jack Frost’s V Recordings. Each of the 18 breakneck club-stormers-ranging from tech-step mayhem to ragga bedlam to soulful jump-up-could easily become a classic anthem. Return to V is a 100% vocal album where Size integrates singers like reggae luminary Sweetie Irie, soul-grabbing diva Jocelyn Brown, human beatboxer Rahzel, Sweetpea, Wilks, Stamina, Vikter Duplaix and plenty others.
Swod Gehen
Crying into a frosty pint of beer never had a more appropriate soundtrack. Cinematic in scope yet intensely personal, Swod’s Gehen-the product of Oliver Doerell (aka Dictaphone) and Stephan Wˆhrmann’s collaboration translates melancholy settings into delicate melodies and plaintive instrumental flourishes. Swod accents rolling piano lines with clicks, whirs and pops before swathing everything in a feather-light electronic fuzz; the end result sounds a bit like a heavily depressed Four Tet. Though not the most subtle work, GehenM/i> is undeniably beautiful, arresting and, at the very least, an utterly pleasurable (if not a touch self-indulgent) musical atmosphere to wallow in.
Momma Gravy Adios
Like the cutesy subversiveness of comic artist Jim Woodring, the artwork here shamelessly disguises the true intentions within. “Sizzling Finch” invites the listener before the dirty sub-basslines kick in and the shadow of a hulking beat emerges, tellin’ you, “You’re not going anywhere mate!” Once you accept this, things mellow and the leftfield treats keep on coming. From “Driffkicker” to “Flying Seed,” each track is a real eclectic gem. Check it, if you know what’s good for ya!
Smoke Everything
From the atmospheric smooth lounge jazz that informed downtempo to Bitches Brew-esque freak outs to off-kilter 5/4 funk jams, Smoke’s Everything is perhaps one of the most appropriately named records. Reminiscent of a Teo Macero or Can project (where larger studio improvisations are edited down to form songs), Smoke quickly jumps from one style and tempo to a seemingly unrelated other. Originally released in 1973 on MPS, this Californian psychedelic jazz outfit creates a far out sound with their driving yet fluent pulse and motif-based melodic improvisations.
