By now, we know Spain suffers from grievous heartaches just like ours, but this album stays on the sunnier surface. Spain’s saucy party-face is indeed different than ours, as it shrugs off the weight of the world and steps into this mix with a kick of the hips. The tracks compiled here, from Madrid’s HiTop label, are the musical equivalent of a huge grin and a bottoms-up glass of jazz, Latin and Brazilian funk. Gecko Turner’s “Un Limon En La Cabeza” has a clean, breezy finish on its horns, while Dan Matias’ “Kongo Kool” opens with a sax line that coyly winks at you from the speakers.
Various Artists Oslo Sessions
Places like Finland, Estonia and Norway may not seem like hotbeds for club music, but acts like Rulers of the Deep, Nuspirit Helskini and Bermuda Triangle have done a lot to refute that theory in recent years. On Oslo Sessions, Norway’s DJ Whale mixes up fare from new-school Scandinavia with considerable skill. However, the compilation gets off to a sluggish start, becoming briefly more interesting with the inclusion of Tony Thomas’ stormer “Darker” before veering quickly back to the obvious. Ultimately, Oslo Sessions appeals to a self-aggrandizing, big-room sensibility that only suits certain moods.
Various Artists Black to the Future
The music on Black to the Future doesn’t shun dancefloor formulas, but reliable 4/4 kicks take a backseat to more complex syncopations. Jazz and nu-soul-inflected rhythms, r&b and leftfield electronic beats all get a chance to vie for greatness here. Highlights include the sublimely gorgeous “This Journey In” by LA’s the Rebirth, broken beat cuts by the UK’s 4Hero’s Dego and Attica Blues’ Charlie Dark and Agent K’s “Mark 1,” a worthy homage to the jazz-funk era. If the beats are still too radical for you, just follow MC Capitol A’s advice and “Bounce To This.”
Amped Up!
For our April issue, we chat with Amp Fiddler and producers Ayro and John Arnold about Detroit’s new soul fusion. Luomo, Ty, Black Strobe, and HiM push boundaries and defy genre definitions. Also featured: Jeff Mills, Louie Vega, Ayatollah, Explosions in the Sky, Squarepusher, Monday Michiru, Eyedea and Abilities, Beanfield, and Lali Puna hold it down, as does fringe label Troubleman Unlimited, and more.
Insomniac Olympics
Various Artists DJ Hyper: Wired
Hyper is often hailed as a pioneer of the breakbeat scene, but Wired begs the question: just how innovative is Guy Hatfield’s sound? Disc one renders doubt, since the mix lacks almost everything but trance samples circa 1998. The beats are simplistic and minimal at best, making you wonder if we’re moving forwards, backwards or stuck in the same old field full of shit. Hyper redeems himself with a second disc of gritty, glitchy beats and complicated breaks from the likes of Marscrusier, Andy Page, Uberzone and Attack Force, and if he’s indeed looking for new territory to explore, this is it.
Dual Control Left or Right
Genre seems both unrecognizable and pointless to debate on the debut album from Manchester duo Phil Styles and Mike Ball, though it does prompt the question of how exactly these 12 tracks fit together. Can funky jazz and brassy horns work next to sharp beats? Should soft guitar lulls criss-cross with technical scratching? Judging by the album title, maybe Left or Right means to pull in two different directions, as the technical is paired with the melodic, and traditional instruments trade off with experimental blips and tweaks. A little of this and a little of that may be inconsistent, but it makes for not too shabby of a first album.
Telefon Tel Aviv My Day Beats Your Week
Writing a song based around a pap clich» expression is a dangerously Alanis Morrissette-ish move. But with their Prince-goes-IDM backdrop and acerbic lyrics, TTA pulls it off, creating caustic dance to play right after LCD Soundsystem. Flip for one of the most mournfully honest glitch-pop tracks of recent, “I Lied,” on which Nick Drake folk simplicity meets a grandiose, Bjàrk-style string arrangement. And all at once, great songwriting has finally returned to electronic music.
The Frontline What Is It
Now what do we have here, a new dude reppin’ the Bay?, asks The Frontline’s MC Locksmith, who, along with his partner Left and producer E-A-Ski (who’s done beats for Too $hort, E-40, etc.), ushers in a next gen of fonky realism for Nor Cal rap fans. The track, with its rough Neptunes feel, matches the Richmond, CA duo’s spiky spits, which answer any doubts about their abilities post-MTV battle (where Lock placed a controversial second). With enough bump for the club and stop-start lyrical delivery, this cut’s on its way to being a new Bay classic.
Trevor Loveys The Bounce
Trevor’s second single for London’s Freerange does bounce-with cut-up disco clips and gated 4/4 beats, it’s funky house in a vacuum compression chamber with Brass Construction gasping for air. Trevor’s own Willesden Rub is smoother and more danceable with its succulent stabbing Rhodes. San Diego’s Hipp-E’s promising remix is way too similar to Jazzanova’s Masters At Work with Roy Ayers remix from two years ago. Same samples, chord sounds, etc. It’s good to bounce, bad to bite.
