DANCE REVIEWS:

Rip It Up, Issue 241, 1 September 1997, Page 28

DANCE REVIEWS:

HOWIE B Turn Off The Dark (Polydor) For a producer and label owner (Pussyfoot) who commands so much respect, not many people have heard Howie’s own brand of nocturnal narcotic. His last album, Music For Babies, was embrionic fluid for the ears, warm and comforting, but we 11... a bit slow —great for bed, not for boogie. Since then he’s made a name for himself by producing the Pop album for that big band starting with U.

So, we’ve arrived at this hotly anticipated collection of free form organic beat moss. It opens with an ultrasound heartbeat on ‘Fizzy in my Mouth/Your Mouth’, and we’re .away. More solid than we’ve experienced before. ‘Butt Meat’ off the Howie B EP (and also included here) is a good indication of the blurry heights ahead. The single ‘Angels Go Bald: To’ is a stand out, as is the strangely out of place, but completely compelling, ‘Take your Partner by the Hand’, featuring Robbie Robertson and his best work since, ‘Crazy River’. ' Instrumental cool that will be the talk of the town. Just try and listen before you rave, eh? JOHN TAITE PUFF DADDY AND THE FAMILY No Way Out (BMG) This is the album where Sean ‘Puffy’ Combs comes out from behind the producer’s chair and drops his own raps (for years other artists have laughed at his dodgy practise of appearing in his artists’ videos, so I guess Puff feels he got something to prove). Predictably he brings in the support cast, so we get guest spots from 8.1. G, Lil Kim, Busta Rhymes etc. Puffy proves himself to be an okay rapper, but really he shouldn’t bother — he’s a dope producer, and has his own little hip-hop empire, so what’s the point? The interesting thing about this album is, Combs has taken three big tracks from the 80s and basically used entire songs as backing tracks. David Bowie’s ‘Lets Dance’, the Police’s -‘Every Breath You Take’, and the Furious Five’s ‘The Message’, are all liberally stolen and beefed up. Sampling is an artform in itself, but the boys take it to far on this joint. Having said that, you can’t deny the premium phatness involved. ANDY PICKERING

DJ CAM Substances (Sony) DJ Cam’s bag is abstract hip-hop but Substances has a refreshingly unique twist on what can often be a tedious sound. Substances is a mood album, perfect for rainy afternoons or warm evenings. Cam is obviously well schooled in both hip-hop and jazz and he brings the two together in sometimes quite challenging ways. On ‘Hip-hop Pioneers’, he samples some classic rappers like Guru, Flavour Flav, Cube etc... and uses them as an intro to a brooding, hornled head nodder. On ‘Sound System Children’, he dabbles with jazzy drum ‘n’ bass and, while ‘Lost Kingdom’ features the vocals of Kakoli Sengupta, providing an middle eastern flavour to a super slow, super stoned percussive groove. ‘Angel Dust’ is another sparkler, a soothing piano melody underpinned by a single bassline and little in the way of a beat — very tasty. If you like your hip-hop with less rap and a definite inclination towards some seriously moody jazz, this one’s for you. ANDY PICKERING

UP, BUSTLE AND OUT Light ’em Up, Blow ’em Out (Ninja Tunes)

Let’s go on a journey. Our travel guides? Up, Bustle and Out, a collective of artists and musicians who’ve come together in Bristol over the last eight years to make music from all over the world. With half a dozen live musos plus a couple of DJs, these guys bring together a wealth of ideas, sounds and styles. One minute it’s flamenco guitar leading the way, next it’s sitar, then before you know it, someone’s rapping over the top of the whole thing. There is a general jazz sound to the whole thing and on tracks like ‘Apple Strudle’, it’s straight-out jazz. But mostly this jazzy feel is merely a starting point for Up, Bustle and Out who seem keen to take each and every song in a new and unique direction. My current favourites: ‘Silks, Perfume and Gold’ with its very Beth Orton-esque vocals and shit-kicking sitar sound, and the very funky ‘Dance of The Caravan Summer’. It’s world music but without a hippie in site — if this was the sort of stuff they had got on board for WOMAD, the park would have rocked. DOMINIC WAGHORN

BOYMERANG Balance of the Force (Regal) Over the last 12 months, Boymerang has become one of the biggest names in drum ‘n’ bass, thanks to some strong remixes and even stronger singles for some of the most respected labels in the biz. 'Soul Beat Runna’, one such single is included here, and it’s a beauty; a sharp metallic percussion led breakbeat underpins a swooning soulful melody, interrupted by some heavy duty bass drops, masterful. That other big single, ‘Still’, originally released on Grooverider’s Prototype label, is also here. When released, it was a very original-sounding tune and it still burns up dancefloors today. Sounding like a runaway freight train chasing you up a long dark tunnel, the bass, constantly threatens to collapse in a distorted smelly mess, but never quite does. These are the two strongest tracks and elsewhere the album is quite varied. ‘The River’ (VIP) is a chilled out roller while ‘You Like It Like That’ is another dancefloor smasher. While Balance Of The Force doesn’t live up to initial expectations, the quality is still good enough to ensure another fully realised solo album in drum ‘n’ bass’s short history.’ ANDY PICKERING VARIOUS ARTISTS . ' Talvin Singh Presents Soundz of the Asian Underground (Island) British born Indian, Talvin Singh is a man who keeps regularly popping up. He’s a very talented tabla player and has done a lot of production work for people like Bjork’. This album combines drum ‘n’ bass rhythms with traditional Indian instrumentation and vocals. A lot of world music bores the pants off me, but Talvin and his team drop some bomb tunes here. Even though it’s hard to tell what kind of instrument is being used those breakbeats are ruff! ANDY PICKERING MC SOLAAR Paradisiaque (Polygram) This is a fantastic album except for one thing — Solaar is an annoying old prat. On previous occasions I admit to being momentarily charmed by the mesmerising drawl of Solaar’s thick French accent, but no more. What is the point in listening to an album rapped in another language? It’s perfect as wanky background music, I hear you say. Can’t argue with that I guess. Anyway, the music here is spectacularly fine. Paradisiaque is produced by Boom Bass of the Funk Mob, and Zdar of Motorbass, and these guys do themselves proud creating a backing bed rich in soul, funk, and melancholy, with just a twist of disco madness. If Solaar would piss right off, this would be the seduction album of the year. ANDY PICKERING