With singles to their name on Toko and Urbantorque, Manchester’s Atomfunk selected L.A.’s Deepfunk for their latest release of classy, mature house music. Echoing the work of Salt City Orchestra, Attaboy and Dealer’s Choice, “Boogie Down” resounds with warm chords, thick bass and strong melodies. Flip for a pair of less dubby but equally friendly cuts primed for the onslaught of summer.
Fresh The Daleks
Having been a badman for a long time now, Fresh simply knows his studio, and it always reaches the dancefloor. “The Daleks” gets the party started-twisted up synth-hooks and bass meet clashing drums. If you liked “Torpedo,” you’ll love this.
Pendulum Trail of Sevens
Coming from Australia, these boys know how to fire up the dance. “Trail of Sevens” is an epic tune, starting off with a nice melodic intro and a simple but effective arpeggio-style sound, just to drop into funked-up Reese-ness with some punchy beats and bass.
Ed Rush & Optical Bullit
True aliens in every respect, Ed Rush & Optical string together tracks with a certain inescapable mystique. “Bullit” takes a step back from this duo’s signature synth escapades, as they sample funky horns and jazzy stabs to keep this tune rolling inna nice disco vibe.
Matthew Herbert Big Band Goodbye Swingtime
According to Duke Ellington, it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing. Such a declamatory statement should cause no insomnia for Matthew Herbert or those involved in his latest project. From the deftly brushed snares and lissome brass section of the opening “Turning Pages,” the rhythmic fluidity of Herbert’s big band is both plain to the ear and plainly pertinent. Herbert’s personal beliefs are almost as well-known as his idiosyncratic working practices. Under his own name and as Doctor Rockit and Radioboy, he adheres to a rigid set of creative guidelines (laid down in his essay “Personal Contract for the Composition of Music”) by which he hacks and sculpts the live audio environment into abrasive and luxuriant structures, molding the imperfect into exquisite designs and vice versa. The dogged self-sufficiency (and, frankly speaking, sheer bl__
Alex Attias The Selector Series Vol. 1
Known for his future jazz productions as part of Beatless, Bel-Air Project, and Plutonia, Alex Attias demonstrates here that he’s one of the finest DJs rocking spots in any genre. On this release from famed West London distributor Goya, Attias throws down a top-notch club set that balances the off-kilter tension of broken beat with straight-up house grooves. Imagining oneself lost in a sweaty root-down is effortless when listening to this mix, which features artists like Domu, Osunlade, Peven Everett, Dego and I.G. Culture. The set peaks with Ayro’s “Let This,” a piece which in four minutes sums up the range of rhythm and soul that permeates the entire collection.
Zero DB Reconstruction
Chris Vogado and Neil Combstock show a willful disregard for dancefloor etiquette on their collection of mixes and reshapings, as they lay down tracks that lead to serious mayhem between the speakers and under the mirrorball. With a rare combination of tough, squelchy techno basslines and exquisite batacuda polyrhythmics, the sound is of barely restrained chaos held together by sheer momentum. Listening to their mix of Sun Ra, one realizes the intricately structured layers with which Zero dB deftly work, visceral reaction coming before conscious recognition. Artists here include Trüby Trio, Peace Orchestra, and Suba, and while all but two of the mixes here have appeared on singles, every rub has been tweaked and reset for this collection. A worthy introduction to the group, and a welcome prologue to their upcoming album.
Dynamo Productions Analogue
Compiled from previous EPs as well as new tracks, Analogue showcases the types of hard hip-hop and funk beats that have propelled Dynamo Productions’ status as DJs. Plumbing (or more accurately, sampling) a line from the JB’s through Eric B., the duo of Andy Smith (Portishead’s tour DJ) and Scott Hendy (a.k.a. Boca 45) turns in tight pieces designed to rock a trainspotters floor filled with people who can name all the source pieces in a Bomb Squad production. A few of the tracks fail to transcend their loops and work best as DJ tools, but overall this is a very solid debut. One for fans of the old-school Grand Central sound.
Various A Blow To the State
An indie hip-hop label obsessed with the politics of the business-what could be more tired? Though its obsession with record industry shadiness borders on the pathological, Coup D’Etat’s stable of artists, including J-Live, Rasco, Fakts One and Akrobatik, has the skills and imagination to transcend the simplicity of this compilation’s raison d’etre. For example, Rasco dispenses with the generalized money anxieties and mistrust that have become two of hip-hop’s most obvious and annoying themes, instead using “Snakes In The Grass” to not only describe his mistreatment while signed to Copasetic Records, but to name names, calling out label head Jon Sexton and threatening him with violence. Now, that’s like whoa.
Jay-J & Miguel Migs West Coast Sessions
Defected makes its presence felt stateside via a new series of double-mix-CDs featuring the cream of US dance music mavens. For its inaugural mixes, Defected teams Grammy nominee Jay-J and prolific DJ/producer Miguel Migs on the aptly titled West Coast Sessions. They offer up the smooth West Coast fare you’d expect from the San Fran-based duo, with zero surprises. A change of texture to differentiate one from the other would have been interesting. Instead, this collection of palatable dance music merely entertains, but never provokes.
