Talk about the perfect soundtrack for the disenchanted youth of America: this is the stuff all troubled teenagers should listen to. If today’s DAF-obsessed, NIN- and Skinny Puppy-referencing hipsters were to do it all over again, they’d be drawn to this double-disc set. A substantial number of tunes collected here are stiff, herky-jerky retro-futuristic electro numbers, from the bald, Miss Kittin-on-testosterone number “Sur Une Cigarette” by It & My Computer, to the twisted synthesized funk of Macho Cat Garage’s “Nightbirds” and Rude 66’s ghettofied take on Miami bass on “Nerves of Steel.” Not for everyone, but that’s part of the appeal, right?
The Strike Boys Playtime
Put aside your Thievery Corporation albums and your Mushroom Jazz compilations. The Strike Boys’ Playtime is what 21st century lounge music should sound like. Putting aside the pulsing, rave-related breaks of their past, this Bavarian duo crafts an album full of gently rolling, vibey downtempo. Most of Playtime amplifies reggae influences, achieving ever more subtle layers of bass. The roots-meets-proto-house swing of “I Am the Witness” and the squelching ragga-tinged synthetics of “Free” and “Everybody” (both featuring MC Blaze) are particularly good, although echoing dub techniques can be heard underneath nearly every track. The album is nicely arranged to roll out into minimal ambient house, but, true to their roots, The Strike Boys can’t resist one last rave jab. Playtime ends on a playful note with “No Music,” a pulsing pop-lock jam full of computerized voices and scissor-kicking breakbeats.
Various Artists Studio X-2
Studio X-2 is a gathering of the newest producers on LTJ Bukem’s fabled Good Looking imprint. Yet it could easily be a gathering of old producers, because the airy, synthetic jazz & bass served up here hasn’t changed much since Bukem pioneered the style in the mid-’90s. At best, these songs display clever tinkering with breakbeats (Alex DB’s “Aurora Boreal,” “Track 9”); at worst, this is smooth jazz hour at the local public library (Nu Moon’s “Too Right” and Track 7). Thankfully, there’s something that saves Studio X-2: six remixes at the end-from the likes of established producers Carlito, Danny C, and John B-add much-needed dancefloor weight by way of chunkier breaks and syrupy sub-bass.
Deyampert Shapes and Colors
On his full-length debut Shapes and Colors, Cleveland, OH’s Deyampert Giles serves up something different for neo-soul fans. Heavily influenced by mentors Jazzanova, Deyampert presents swelling, organic downtempo and nu-jazz flavors, broken up by melancholy acoustic guitar tracks that wouldn’t be out of place on a Cat Stevens record. Vocalists Channeng Payton and Heather Clayton give the album more weight, and their liquid soul stylings and uplifting spoken-word interludes should appeal to fans of Floetry and Erykah Badu. Deyampert’s not sounding any new notes-Tr?by Trio and Dego have been here before-but he does a great job of layering texture, most evident on percussion-filled numbers like “It’s You” and the aptly named, fuzzy house swinger “This Is The Dance Track on This Album.”
Various Artists We Bore 2
Seattle’s irreverent Toast and Jam came up with the mandate for this compilation, asking artists to reinvent songs they couldn’t stand as tracks they actually liked. Certain people will prefer Britney Spears’ sugar-coated “Baby One More Time” and Madonna’s saucy “Vogue” to the eardrum cut ‘n’ paste ping-pong of Edward Coli’s “Object […] Object.” Some may say classic rock standard “House of the Rising Son” is maligned by the five-minute feedback drone Jansky Noise presents as a remix. But there’s amusement to be had listening to the Emanon’s sutured techno polka version of the Happy Days theme and the Square Root of Evil’s drum ‘n’ crash send-up of Nelly’s “Hot in Herre.” We Bore 2 is many things-snide, loveable, at times ear-shattering-but it’s never boring.
Various Artists Evolution of New Sounds
This new compilation from Large Music bills itself as containing “dark and dubby electric grooves.” If this is what passes for dark in the house music world, then throw on that Skinny Puppy record, and let’s jet. There’s scarcely a minor chord melody or scary sound among these ten tracks. On the plus side, there is some experimenting with 4/4’s boundaries here, which can only be a good thing. Highlights of Evolution… include the squelching Chicago-style funk of Peter Hecher’s “Funkdafied,” the drummy and tribal “Paradise” by Roy Davis Jr., and “Hold On To You,” Jay-J and Andrew Macari’s bizarre combination of ’80s, disco and gospel-house influences. Personally, I find house a little hard to take when it’s unmixed, but if you’re a conoisseur, you’ll love these 60 minutes of raw, unadulterated tracks.
Various Artists Sahara Lounge
Ever eaten at a Lebanese, Korean or Indian restaurant? Then you know that pop tends to sound corny and too slick for its own good, no matter what language it’s sung in. Unfortunately, pop figures too prominently on the Sahara Lounge compilation. Despite its aim of blending Middle Eastern rhythms with electronic beats, most of the time the songs would be better suited for the chopping block than the cutting edge. There are some nice moments-particularly Mohammed Mounir’s staccato Egyptian vox on “Hanina” and the loopy swing of “Dub4Me,” performed by Lebanese duo Soap Kills. Still, it says something that the best song on Sahara Lounge, “Cleopatra in New York,” is by Manhattan’s Nickodemus and Carol C. Perhaps traditional Arab musicians sound better on their own; or in the hands of Western sampler gurus, rather than their own pop producers.
Various Artists Advanced Public Listening Vol. 1
In 20 years, when I’ve learned all the dances I need to know, I’ll put on this compilation and start doing some truly next-level maneuvers. You know, some antennae-in-the-air, feet-in-a-twist, alien-uprock-type shit. Until then, I’ll bump Eight Miles High’s psychotic laser-tag drum & bass-meets-free-jazz-piano mash-up “Latein.” Then again, Daedelus’s bump-in-the-night remix of a certain clap-heavy Busta Rhymes and Sean Paul song is giving me a strange feeling in my trousers. Is that a banana in my pocket, or is Phoenicia’s outer space two-step rave up “Conummity College” just happy to see me? Yes sir, this is the future of danceclash, and it’s giving me a big fat IDM boner.
Benga & Scream Africa
Croydon’s troublesome teenagers represent the Southside with another floor-quaker. Unveiled by Hatcha during Tempa’s winter break, Big Apple has upped the ante on deep South minimal dubstep, unleashing both the on-fire Digital Mystikz and the soon-to-come Loefa. On this plate, Skream goes all Afro-technik while Benga perfects his low swung bounce bass. Fruity Loops runnin’ red.
Wiley Who Ate All The Pies?
On the verge of big things with his spit-drenched, riddim-racked debut album release in 2004, Wiley Kat follows the refrain invented on his subby 9/11 tribute, “Ground Zero,” adding a customary layer of Chinese kitsch melody to derange its original hollow mournfulness. While Dizzee stepped up with a bang, Wiley’s comin’ with a micro-genre all of his own: eskibeat!
