Artist : VARIOUS
ARTISTS
Title : 21st CENTURY SKA
Label : M21
Format : CD / Vinyl
Every
so often an album comes along that has a profound effect upon your listening
habits. An album that allows you to view everything that went before within
a new slant. Twenty First Century Ska volume one
is one of those albums. Straight ahead old time Ska this ain't.
This is a mashed up-beat frenzy, for the future
jump up crowd. With its sub bass thumpingSka beats, its Big Beat,
Ragga fueled Breaks and skanked
up funky Hip Hopflavours. This is one hell of a
party packed piece.
Here's
the breakdown :-
With the opening verb of "What
a wicked style"Under Water Ska by LL Nino
kick starts the proceedings. This Soundclash records tune jumps off at the
deep end with its fusion of Skatalites stylee horn loops and a B-line to set
your sound systems alight.
What a wicked style indeed.
Hardwires 'Conskank'
Is naturally a skanking heavy Hip Hop'omage to
da 'erb. Complete with masterful scratching to make ya itch.
Jump Jump Jump.
Next up
The Tokyo Ska Paradise
Orchestras 'Jon Lord' opens with a thematic loop which
surprisingly gives way to an infectious Latino piano lick. A Big Beat
floorfiller for sure. A right old mix up featuring Ska toasted vocal samples,
fanfaric horns and all nicely underpinned by a subtle Ska style b-line. What's
nice is that as soon as you begin to get a hook on this tune its off again
merging yet another style into the musical blender that is Jon
Lord This builds and builds to a climatic crescendo then leaves us
with weeps and wails of applause. I couldn't help but join in.
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, more, more.
After
the party fun time that is the previous opening tunes.
New Kingdoms 'Scramble' pulls everything back from the
melee with a hip dipping Upsetters influenced, Trojan soaked sound, complete with a respectable take on the Godfather of Ska's Hammond
sound (Jackie Mittoo). Also this tune and its placing within the CD's sonic
scheme of things, acts as a nice breather. A chance to bop on the spot and
roll another.
Man that's really mellow.
The ironically
named Laidback provide us with 'International'. Laidback
this ain't, this is full on, funked up breakbeatfusion. A barn stormer of a tune.
Brothers 'n' Sisters good day. I hope you're doing fine.
Already
a personal fave, produced by the Dub
Pistols' Barry Ashworth. At first General Narcos
'Rudi Revenge' has you wondering if the ska tip has finally
jumped ship. That is a until the opening furious breakbeat sciences have passed. The tune then drops away to reveal the
emerging friendly tones of ska, rising like a phoenix
from the flames. Rudi's Revenge then progress'
on into a Skalicous-Hip Hop, get down on the floor, reach for the stars, mash
up stomp.
Are You ready To Dance?
Freaky Jalapeanos 'Gotta
Get It' opens with another famous sample from Big Youths
'Screaming Target'. Then it's on with the Hip Hop
'til you drop party vibe. Another big beat anthem
in the making I'm sure.
Get it while the getting is good.
Then it's
the turn of Head
Mix Collective with their 'Reach Out'
this tune is remixed here by Zion Train and is
already a massive hit with droves of outdoor festival goers. 'Reachout' opens
with the quality four four beats and wicked B-Lines that we've come to expect
from Zion Train. Added to that are the truly sublime
horn and vocal lines of Head Mix Collective. A
tune to gets the hips dipping across the multiverse.
Just a little bit of love and understanding goes a long long
way.
Subculture Soundsystems
'Cutting Edge' follows on nicely with its blend of ragga
style breaks and electro ska.
Its Kraftworkian analogue synth lines also introduces a cinematic feel to
this DJ collectives debut outing. An interesting brew that grows more infectious
with each new listen.
Aaah!
'Twisted Ska'
by Pick and Mix and produced by The Freestyers.
Is loaded with toasted loops and catchy melody lines. Twisted Ska
is one to get them up and weaving. Silly dancing abounds.
Skip Skip Skadip Dip Dip.
Fat Stacks 'Original Funkster'
is a Nu Skool Stax Style Amphetamine workout. Funked
up and grooving out to the fore. Hammond lead lines and a rhythmical frenzy,
says it all.
Groove it.
I must
confess that I can only detect the merest hint of Ska
within Super Ads 'You Must Be the Killer' but what
a cracking tune. With its 'Original Funkster' loop,
a live and kicking rhythm section. Completed by some demon DJ scratching
and a wacked out wah wah guitar. If this lot play
live I for one will be at the front of the queue.
Go Go Go.
Finally
we come to 21st
Century Ska's closing tune this being Two Bad Cards
'Mentally Sk'd'. A longtime personal fave and lifted from
their criminally neglected Hustling Ability Album.
Mentally Sk'd is faithful to the sounds and feel
of original Ska, only now set within our digital age. Produced by Adrian
Sherwood and Carlton Olgive
this tune has all the knees up and grinabilty that any self respecting Ska
tune should have. Many's the night that yours truly has closed with this gem
of a tune. With its stepper style rhythms, bubbling chops and the most infectious
horn lines you're likely to hear this side of Kingston J.A. Makes this both
a must to own and perfect fanfaric close to this wonderful awe-inspiring album.
Lets Party.
Peace 'N' Love
bimble@freeradicalsounds.com
Those that do
not learn from the past are destined to repeat it.
Artist
: VARIOUS ARTISTS
Title : CLUB MEETS DUB
FOUR
Label : ZIP DOG RECORDS
Format : CD/LP
Club meets
Dub Four opens very much on the upbeat club tip. Fusing techno and junglist
beats with skanked up stabs and dubalicious B-lines.
Picture this your a jump-the-fence-DJ
going to the Glastonbury Festival and you wanna rip up the night on one of
those naughty all nighter sound systems. Ten platters is about all you can
haul over the 30 foot perimeter fence. No problem at all, if you include at
least a couple of volumes of this fine series. You'll find every kind of texture
you're likely to need and more besides.
Club Meets Dub 4 is also
a perfect companion for the DJ who never quite knows what way there set will
go. I've fallen back on this series more than once.
Home listeners should
not be put off by all this DJ talk as these albums are also great for home
wigging out, party's etc, etc. Also great in the car for those long drives
home from gigs.
If your in London on
a Thursday nite checkout Zipdogs free club Conspirators In Dub @ The islington
Bar London N1 for tips on how it's done. In particular watchout for DJ Zipdog
whose set is almost entirely made up of tunes pulled from the labels catalogue
and this series of albums.
Personal Fave tracks
from Club Meets Dub 4 then :-
The opener by Serious Danger entitled 'High Noon Part 2' is perfectly placed
and opens the CD on a nice uplifting tip. Next I'd pick Square Off by Roni
Size whose instantly recognizable unique brand of Bristol Junglist Jump up
sends this writer into manic-maniac- mode. But worry not as Emperor Sly enter
the frame just in time to slide the beats towards a more skank worthy pulse
with a tune called 'Gate-Crasher'. This one drops and builds from here to
eternity. Fittingly we end up in a dark club with Digi-Dubs Smart Alec and
Clever Cloggs pondering the evils of drink. A great re-version of this digi-dub
classic.
To sum up I'd say that
both this and the previous volumes in the Club Meets Dub series do a splendid
job of collating some of Europe's underground feast of talent. There's always
a new tune or artist's name that you're amazed to discover and you'll probably
go scuttling back to place you found it to see if there's anymore where that
came from.
These albums are a symptom
of the times. A time of genre-hopping and barrier breaking and I for one feel
the global-mix-up-vibe is a good thing and our world is better place for it.
Fences are made for jumping
and roll on the Zip-Dog Free Festival Tour. (I wish)
bimble@freeradicalsounds.com
Click
here for our interview with Zip Dog Records
Artist
: VARIOUS ARTISTS
Title : AMNESIA MUSIC
BAR
Label : ZIP DOG RECORDS
Format : CD/LP
The
story goes that when the bods at Zip-Dog records came to compile tracks for
inclusion on the compilation Club Meets Dub 4. They discovered such a lot
of triple A quality tunes that they soon had enough material for another whole
album. And here it is entitled 'Amnesia Music Bar'.
The emphasis this time
has been every so slightly altered to bring us a less hectic selection of
cool beats and warming sounds. Making this the perfect album for those long
skunk filled summer nights.
Highlights include Select
fire's I'm Easy a sun-burning-hot-super-opening- salvo. Also the massively
uplifting Destination by Back To Base. A band you're bound to stumble across
at this years summer festivals. I was pleased also to discover Rebel yelle's
Purple Heart. This one's a storming dub-dance tune from the usually banging
acid techno label Stay Up Forever. My only gripe is that it's too short by
far. Coming in as it does at a very radio friendly three minutes thirty seconds.
Watchout for the perfectly placed Janis Joplin samples on this one. Lastly
I'd mention Maroon Towns Sierra Nevada A beautiful summer star turn. With
it's snatches of sweet-soulful vocals and sweeping digital soundscapes. All
complimented by a driving bassamatic beat. A Bimble top tune for sure.
To put this album
in a nutshell. I'd offer you a series of adjectives:- Technotastic, Dubalicious,
Uplifting, Sweet, Summer, Stomping.
Enough said.
bimble@freeradicalsounds.com
Click
here for our interview with Zip Dog Records
Artist
: THE ROOTSMAN
Title : THE FINAL FRONTIER
- THE ROOTSMAN REMIXED
Label : THIRD EYE MUSIC
Format : CD/LP
'The Final Frontier' is the lastest instalment in The Rootsmans occasional series
of remix albums. This time we're treated to his music being remixed by among
others Oochi, The Disciples and Zion Train.
All tracks here are reworkings
of songs lifted from the last Rootsman album '52 Days To Timbuktu'. Most of
the afore-mentioned albums tracks are given a going over with some receiving
the attention of two or even three different remixers.
Highlights include the
albums opener 'Bad Boy Buisiness' (reality mix) A radical reworking of the
previously jungilist stormer. Remixed here by Strongpoint it's given a more
soulful feel and features a lovely vocal by (ex unique 3) Karin Minott. An
element that brings to mind some of Reprazents's more thoughtful moments.
'The Final Frontier'
also features no less than three different re-versions of an original favourite
'Mother of nature'. I particuarly like both the 'The Universal mix' by Oochi
and what I'll call The Disciples 'Secret Bonus mix'. Both Versions have an
excellent future-dub feel with The Disciples plotting a more traditional/rootsical
course, while Oochi makes for the hills with an impressive steppers/almost
hardstep version.
Both 'The Final Frontier'
and The Rootsman in general are best summed up by quoting a sample used within
Nigel Parkers wonderful stripped Hip-Hop reworking of the track 'Cheb ragga',
"Musicians today see music as a field that is wide open fo study, for devotion
and for the desire to be able to play anything". Need I say more.
bimble@freeradicalsounds.com
Artist
: EMPEROR SLY
Title : ROCKIT
Label : ZIP DOG RECORDS
Format : 12"
Emperor Sly bring us two technoid workouts based loosely around the eighties
seminal classic, ''Rock It' originally brought to us by Herbie Hancock.
Version two is my preference
which begins as a more stripped down affair. Then builds nicely into a hard
and subsonic floor shaking thang.
With its familiar old
skool hooks combined with up to the minute hard hitting beats makes sure that
this one's bound to get your dance floor jumping.
bimble@freeradicalsounds.com
Click
here for our interview with Zip Dog Records
Title : TERRAMUSICA
Artist : VARIOUS ARTISTS
Label : ZIP DOG RECORDS
Format : CD/LP
The
follow - up to the first Global Explorer compilation, Terra Musica delves
deeper into the waters of cross - cultural fusion, taking in a fair amount
of beaty breaks and drum n bass manoeuvres along the way. Many of the tracks
work equally well on the dance floor, or to chill-out to, and after repeated
listens you can still find something fresh to catch your ear - being a double
CD there is plenty to explore.
The usual suspects turn
up in the form of Asian Dub Foundation, Transglobal Underground, Fundamental,
and Astralasia flying the world fusion flag - Loop Guru turn in a particularly
fine sitar - type tune with meandering lead lines and strange sampled rapping.
There are also hints of 60s psychedelia, particularly in Fatboy Slims remix
of Tranquility Bass and Full Moon Scientist & Mee’s ‘Alien of Albion’ which
sound excellent propelled by heavy bass and breaks. Upcoming acts Somatik
and Bi-Polar provide unusual eastern - crossover drum n bass tunes, while
Roni Size and DJ Die add more chilled world influences to their trademark
sound.
A seam of dub sews the
whole thing together, particularly on the bass line side of things, combined
with the diverse instruments and voices reflecting the cultural mash-up our
‘Global Village’ is creating through its electronic, digital culture. We need
variety in our sonic food.
If you want to move beyond
the dance floor conventions and still keep a foot tapping, check out the range
of stuff on offer here - oh, and theres also software included to enable you
to remix the featured tracks to your own specifications.
CLIVE SUBCULTURE
Click
here for our interview with Zip Dog Records
