In the techno-pop-punk ultra-future, there will be no Boyzone or N*Sync-boy stars will have names like Folxtrott, dDamage and Animal. At least, that’s the world envisioned through the crystal ball of this compilation, a follow-up to Tsunami Addiction’s November 2002 Toxic Girls release. Cheeky bedroom stars from France, England, the USA and Canada plunder the troughs of New Romantic, Casiotone pop, garage rock and indie twee to create a genre-fuck 21-track assemblage that is sometimes difficult, often endearing, and never short on personality. Get ready to rip down your Aaron Carter posters when this group of boyz comes to town.
Holddger Flinsch Toranga
Holger Flinsch presents his third release on Phono Elements, dropping another swirl into the splicing gene pool of genre-bending that’s currently pervading minimal. The a-side draws and pulls with punchy minimal beats, utilizing the fine art of breaks in time, and verges on trance-out. The masterful b-side, an eight-minute journey through a 4/4 dream world, builds with a pleasant, flowing feeling reminiscent of top-notch mid-’90s ambient.
Pharaohe Monch Agent Orange
One of hip-hop’s most underrated lyricists melds clever metaphors (“I threw Iraq and Iran…Y’all wanna ask me Hussein”) with a soul-baring hook for a scathing anti-war anthem. The track-a hypnotic, relentlessly pounding affair filled with quirky electronic gurgles-is more of a mixtape gem than a club banger.
Mety Ogre Feat. Robust & Rift Napalm Flibbertigibbit
Chi-Town underground producer Meaty Ogre has worked with Sage Francis, Qwel and Offwhyte, but this time locals Robust and Rift Napalm get the nod. On Flibbertigibbit,” Robust keeps it real: “I’m not your hero/I’m just a fuckin’ weirdo.” His witty flow fits the lazy, bass-heavy beat nicely. Rift Napalm drops SAT vocab over heavy guitars on the flip’s “Long Dirty Word.”
MF Doom vs.Viktor Vaugn Change the Beat
If Viktor Vaughn’s voice sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Damning the constricting time/space continuum, MF Doom (aka Zev Luv X of KMD) has prequeled himself, conjuring up Viktor Vaughn, the man behind/before the mask. The two characters go at it over disparate beats-an eerie fragmented track and a head-nodder that keeps changing-and let the listener decide the winner.
Larry Gold Larry Gold Presents Don Cello and Friends
Larry Gold has been around the block (at least a bunch of Philly blocks), arranging strings, producing and playing cello and working with artists on many past and present hits, including the Roots and Justin Timberlake and classics like the O’Jays and Gamble & Huff. The personnel on his Don Cello reads like a who’s who of Philly’s Black Lily scene, represented by people like Jaguar Wright, Floetry, Kindred and members of the Roots laying down silky vocals and tight rhymes. The string-laden neo soul is interesting in either a dance-friendly, contemporary R&B fashion or syrupy ballad style-it just doesn’t seem to have staying power in the CD player like Gold’s work on other people’s albums.
Baby Mammoth Octo Muck
On previous Baby Mammoth albums, you could expect to listen to a whole album and perhaps doze off in a chilled-out stupor. Not so with Octo Muck-the duo of Mark Blissenden and Steve Coby are taking their sound in new directions. Here you find eight-minute house tracks interspersed between the dubby downtempo of their previous work. In general, there’s a much faster, dance-oriented feel to the album, though the duo haven’t lost their trademark acid jazz feel. Like former labelmates Fila Brazillia, the results vary-when it’s not filler, it’s very good.
Jackie Mittoo Champion In the Arena 1976-1977
The dear departed Jamaican keyboardist Jackie Mittoo is certainly one of the most influential figures in the back shadows of reggae, from his pioneering work with the Skatalites, as a tireless session man for Studio One, and of course as a maker of blissful dub grooves on his own in the mid-late ’70s. It’s boring to write about Blood & Fire, though the music never is. Every release is flawless, with excellent liner notes, layout, great sound and perfect selections-here culled from Mittoo’s best period. The organ is warm and engulfing, the Bunny Striker Lee rhythms are dubby with a funky feel-this might just be the best compilation in existence for lovers of Jackie Mittoo’s sound.
Slowpho Hotel Sleep
From the first track to the last, Hotel Sleep is a stunning blend of styles and a confident debut, weaving jazz and classical influences with breakbeat, downtempo, drum & bass and minimal techno beats. The Norwegian duo of Christian Watkins (beats) and Hilde Drange completely avoids beginner’s pitfalls, with complex production, lush strings and icy melodies on par with Bj?rk’s best work. Drange’s vocals evoke Joni Mitchell (Sarah McLaughlin?) in their jazzier moments and Portishead at others, gracefully weaving through Watkins arrangements. Hotel Sleep kicks your ass in many ways, drawing you in immediately with beautiful songs and keeping you there with a hypnotic, subtle complexity.
Clyde Feat. Capitol A Serve It Up
Seems Brooks, Crazy Penis and Atjazz have jumped Clive “Clyde” Austin into their Derby, UK electro-house gang. He pays dues with a slippery, neon-lit funk number that’s choppy enough to fit Philly/SF MC Capitol A’s staccato prose. Tony Wah-Chu-Ku’s Ritalin-popping remix plays hopscotch in your head, while the aforementioned Brooks gets regrettably nostalgic for hip-house on the flip. Tough turf.
