DANCE REVIEWS

Rip It Up, Issue 240, 1 August 1997, Page 26

DANCE REVIEWS

COLDCUT More Beats And Pieces (Ninja Tune Bit if a special release this one. The concept behind this project is a little complicated, but it runs something like this. Coldcut pressed up 30 custom made platters of souped up beats and pieces, and gave them out to various DJ types, generally regarded as being the most kick-ass around. So we have remixes from Q Bert, Tortoise, Kid Koala and er, T Power. Coldcut’s original is a joyous mash-up of beats and samples from everywhere and nowhere. As a bonus there’s a six turntable jam between Strictly Kev, Kid Koala, and Ollie Teeba, recorded live on tour, then re-edited, and as expected, it’s fully phat and fully mad. The real bonus however, is the inclusion of a quicktime video playable on CD Rom. The audio quality is good, and the video features two cartoon representations of Matt And Jon from Coldcut, scarpering around, getting up to all sorts of mischief. Highly amusing stuff, and Coldcut deserve mucho credit for still continuing to push the boundaries. VARIOUS ARTISTS Journeys By DJ I Alter Hours (JDJ) Another fine release in the Journeys By DJ series. This one is subtitled ‘The Ultimate Deep Selection’, and as such, it’s a fine collection of deep house cuts mixed, by Jay Chappell, into one seamless whole. To my ears, it’s not quite as mellow as one would expect from a chill-out album, but then this is house music and at least there’s nothing here that could be described as ‘banging’. What we do have is 16 tracks of premium deepness, and thankfully most of the tracks are unknown gems, not big cheesy anthems, year-old anthems. Highlights include wicked cuts from Chez Daimer, E Culture, and the track ‘Lonely Winter’, from those impeccable maestros of the spunky house groove, Deep Dish. To top it off, Mr Chappell’s mixing is smooth, accomplished, and understated. In short, this album is tailored for chucking on when you get home from an evening out, but for one reason or another you’ve still got a bit more energy left, and pure ambience is just not gonna do it for ya. JAMES HARDWAY Illustrated Man (Recordings of Substance) New single from James Hardway, who is better known as David Harrow, and quite a popular sort of chap all over NZ. ‘The Illustrated Man’ refers to the fact that Mr Harrow is just that — he’s the proud bearer of many a tattoo. Musically. James Hardway is Harrow’s drum ‘n’ bass alter-ego. You may have heard last years Deeper, Wider, Smoother Shit, which was an excellent album of jazzy drum ‘n’ bass. This single continues in much the same vein, with cool remixes from Hoax, Nostramus, and James himself. VARIOUS ARTISTS US Homegrown (City of Angels) I was hoping this would be pretty cool. City Of Angels is an LA based label, run by a couple of ex-pat Englishmen,

and they veer towards the sort of West Coast funky breakz that are popular with the likes of Aldo Bender. Unfortunately, most of the tracks here stick to this formula and sound kinda dated. A big bad breakbeat, a dodgy hip-hop sample, and some 303 madness does not automatically make a top tune. Also much of the music here is cold — where’s the emotion and the warmth? Still, not all the news id bad; Keoki’s slightly cheesy (but superfunky) ‘Caterpillar’ is an standout anthem, predictably the 'Rabbit In The Moon’ mix. Interesting, but far from essential. VARIOUS ARTISTS 21 ST Century Soul (Talkin’ Loud) No mucking about with the title here. 21st Century Soul is a fairly sweeping sort of statement, but if Talkin’ Loud are re-positioning themselves as top providers of future soul, then on the strength of this compilation you won’t get any argument from me. Previously, Talkin’ Loud were languishing in the noman’s land of acid jazz’s tedious demise, they now boast an impressive roster of diverse artists with one common attribute — they got soul — and in large funky doses. On the breakbeat tip, 4 Hero provide a deep complex drum ‘n’ bass landscape for Ursula’s sultry vocals; Roni Size’s Represent project drop the vocal driven, edgy, paranoid breaks of ‘Digital’; and from the same Bristol camp, DJ Krust delivers ‘Future Unknown’, another bass-heavy dancefloor monster, that reinforces Krust’s rep as one of the elite, pushing jungle music into soulful new territories. Jazz legend Courtney Pine features with ‘Don’t Explain’, a laid back headnodder that rides on hiphop beats, and those eccentric Japanese funksters UFO pop in with ‘His Name Is’. The jewel in this particular crown is ‘I Am The Black Gold of the Sun’ by Masters At Work’s Nuyorcian Soul project. If you’re looking for heartfelt soul, this a performance that will take you away. Masters at Work take care of production, and it's some of their best work for a long time. An uplifting piano' melody leads a slow breakbeat shuffle to heaven and back, impeccable. THE ODD TOOT Bambot (Recordings of Substance) Well, I’m buggered if I know who The Odd Toot is, but Bambot is a very similar sound to a certain James Hardway, except it’s a bit weirder and takes in a wider range of influences. ‘Scattergood’ drops heavy distorted breakbeats, tasty cymbal crashes, some cheesy organ, and a fluttery flute under a repeated ragga chant, and is pretty cool. ‘Cut It Off’ is more laid back, but is still a totally mad jazz cut, featuring lashings of cheesy organ and uplifting synths over shuffling drums. All up, it’s a varied album, with a very improvised approach to music, everything sounds like it was made up as they went along and the feel of energy and spontaneity is captured in a very positive way. It’s funky, laced with street smarts and a cocky attitude, and that can only be a good thing.

VARIOUS ARTISTS Serialmente Vorte (BMG) Now this is a bit of an odd one. Serialmente Vorte is all in French (a language! don’t understand), and what they appear to have done is rounded up the top French dance producers and asked them to remix a popular TV theme tune. The point of this exercise completely escapes me, but what would have been cool is a compilation of original work from the French scene — which in the aftermath of the success of people like Daft Punk, has gone from strength to strength. DJ Cam, Snooze, the Mighty Bop, and Dimitri From Paris, are all very talented lads, and hearing their own interpretations of themes like ‘Mission Impossible', ‘Twin Peaks', ‘the Avengers’, and ‘James Bond’, sounds like a bit of a laugh, but in reality, after one listen it starts to drive you a wee bit mad. All up, a wasted opportunity. DIRTY BEATNIKS Don’t Stop EP (Wall of Sound) Wicked new EP from the Beatniks on the much respected Wall Of Sound label. This sort of ‘big beat trip-hop on steroids’ sound is becoming increasingly popular these days, and this recording is a worthy edition. ‘Don’t Stop’ rides on a phat hip-hop loop, a “drop the bomb” vocal sample, and a restrained and tasteful squirt of 303 acid — well classy. ‘Mad Buzz’ is more of a grunty house cut, starting off with a deep atmospheric vocaltype scenario, before those rugged beats take control. ‘Dont Stop’ also has an ‘Abstract Message’ remix courtesy of q-bum — it’s a super dope, hip-hop type number, with more bounce than ya mother on a trampoline. Yep, total head nodding bliss. MEKON Welcome To Tackletown (Wall of Sound) Well, well, a full length album from the mad hatters at Wall Of Sound. Mekon have been constructing industrial strength beat-fests for awhile now, so this is a logical step for them. The album opens with ‘Phatty’s Lunchbox', the original big beat anthem, with it’s sampled beats, wailing siren, and grinding guitar. There’s a ‘Freestyle Part I’, in which Evil B lets rip with some rapping over helicopter noises and some ruff beats. ‘Freestyle Part 2’ has more electric guitar and an ironic sample that says “Rock and Roll has one foot in the grave”. Well, quite. ‘Revenge of the Mekon’ is another old classic. A lazy dub bassline propels various different beats over which Mad Frankie Fraser (an old ex-con) utters words of wisdom on the joys of crime, and succeeds in demonstrating just why he is known as ‘mad’. ‘Mr Sophistication’ is again guitar-led, and is one of the best instrumental hip-hop productions you’ll ever hear — sophisticated big-beat, who would have thought. ‘Skool’s Out’ features Schooly D on the mic. His hip-hop party-boasts fit perfectly with Mekons dirty beats, and yet another anthem is created. It’s very cool to see (and hear) more rappers on what we used to call trip-hop tracks, because the addition of a rap adds a new dimension to the music. This is a fine album. VARIOUS ARTISTS Let It Beat (Ozone) This is a nice compilation of varied material, and the common thread seem to be funky breakbeats of all varieties. We start with the classic ‘Paroles’ from Mike Ink, on Warp Records. Then we have a remix of ‘What I’m Feeling’ by Nightmares On Wax, a slow and groovy slice of Rakim-sampling jazzy hip-hop. Wall Of Sound represent strongly with three quality, beat dominated tracks, from the Dirty Beatniks, the Wiseguys, and Akasha. There’s even a track from Omni Trio, ‘Trippin’ On Broken Beats’, which is one of the best things he’s ever done — pure uplifting jungle jazz heaven. Those are the top selections, but rest assured, the quality on this quirky compilation is consistent. Mark this as one to check.