COMPILATIONS REVIEWS
Martyn DJ Mehdi
fabric 50 Red Black & Blue
fabric Ed Banger
Swung funk futurism Phuture hip-hop remix selection
Can Martyn do any wrong right now? The only Parisian-born Mehdi Favéris-Essadi has been
sane conclusion is no. Picking him for the collaborating with Ed Banger chief Pedro
50th outing on the more 4/4 orientated Winter, aka Busy P, for over a decade now, so
‘fabric’ series is a bold move, but the Dutch it’s no surprise that his hip-hop skillz were
dubstep innovator fi ts the remit perfectly welcomed into the Ed Banger electronic
while still re-evaluating boundaries. family.
Starting with the woozy trash-funk of Hudson This collection gathers together most of his
Mohawke’s ‘Joy Fantastic’, the Dutchman best remixes from the past decade, segued
then roots himself in the swung house/ into a futuristic electro-hop blend that
techno template he’s been exploring of late, sounds as fresh as the Seine breeze.
but comes at it from so many angles that Staygold’s ‘Justify’ becomes disco-hop, while
MONE
Y
you’re left with a 360-degree overview of his the Justice stylings of David Rubato’s ‘Circuit’
SHO
T!
current DJ sound. show that Mehdi isn’t afraid to make full use
Potentially disastrous on paper, in practise of the cutting-edge electronic sounds at his
Martyn’s seamless syncopated groove is disposal for remixes.
genuinely mesmerising with DJ Bone’s His Holy Ghost, Sébastien Tellier and
Detroit deepness, Ben Klock’s depraved Chromeo refi xes are almost house tempo,
Sub:stance mixed by
Berghain intensity, Cooly G’s distant shining examples of how Mehdi has helped
Scuba
dreaminess and the cheeky broken beat funky drag electro and hip-hop closer together,
of Altered Natives, Roska and Nubian Mindz while his rejig of CSS ‘Music Is My Hot Hot Sex’
Ostgut Ton
all merging effortlessly. Allan McGrath is glitchy, noisenik and superb. Carl Loben
Deep, dark and deadly
With so much cross-pollination at work
right now there is simply no home for
musical preconceptions — get rid of
them, purge them from your conscious-
ness. Every genre, every sub-genre
and every sound seems to be moving, Burial-styled ‘Paper Street’, the Moonbootica Various Artists
merging and shifting at a hyper-kinetic Hotfl ush boss soon moves towards a Save The Night Nu Electro 2
rate. The most surprising thing isn't territory that covers organic dubstep Moonboutique Records Street Sounds
how much music is transforming, but funk, hypnotic techno motifs and
just how instinctively these changes melodic trippiness through tracks like A tale of two galaxies Old for nu
become embraced. Joy Orbison’s ‘The Shrew Would Have
Just take the journey of Berghain’s Cushioned The Blow’. Hamburg jocks and party persons For an album that boldly calls itself ‘nu
dubstep focused Sub:stance parties — But, while this trippy deepstep thread Moonbootica (aka KoweSix and Tobitob) turn electro’, this sounds an awful lot like the old
the inspiration behind this mix from is loosely followed, this is no linear in a throbbing, sweaty mix here for their own stuff — at least, at its root. Well, almost.
Scuba, who alongside Paul Fowler set journey. Extra aggression comes from Moonboutique Records. Take ‘Intercontinental Bass Express’ from
Sub:stance up in July 2008. Shortstuff’s hectic two-stepper ‘See And it means business from the off. Whether Debonaire & Darxid, for example. With its
Given dubstep’s deeply laid UK-roots Ya’, Untold’s ’92-goes-2010 collision of it’s the minimal rave of Mr J & T’s ‘Hr. Rohien’, Cylon-esque robot vocal, 808 cowbells and
and Berlin’s pervading techno fi xation, hardcore stabbage and pulsing techno the full-on rave of Alex Metric’s ‘Shirley, You the like, it sounds the part — but feels like it’s
eyebrows were raised when they start- funk and Surgeon’s industrial ‘Klonk Can’t Be Serious’ or building rave of the boys’ trying far too hard to do so.
ed hosting a whole night of dubstep Pt.4’, while late highlights come from own ‘The Ease’, this is built for, well, raving. The principal difference here is that while the
in the city's fl agship debauchery den, Shackleton’s disorientating ethno- It veers calamitously into abject cheese on original sounds of electro were sparse,
but the idea proved a stealthy success dub, Instra:mental’s nasty electro- more than a few occasions —Hey Today’s robotic, futuristic, cold even, this collection
— overhauling the notion of Berghain breaks cut ‘Voyeur’ and Joker’s lysergic ‘Wonderman’ and the staggeringly bad ‘Big has been diluted by years of adulteration, of
as a strictly techno fortress, as well as funker ‘Psychedelic Runway’. Dick’ by The Funk Out two standout offenders. genres blending together, and not
shifting Berlin’s focus towards the bass If CDs showcasing club nights are But all is forgiven, however, on popping in necessarily in an particularly good way.
futurism of dubstep and its mutating intended to offer a window into their the second disc, which is all deepness like Sometimes this sounds like breaks,
variants. Boundaries were broken sound and entice you to the party in Marcin Czubala’s ‘Jedwab’, the Italo-tastic sometimes trance, sometimes ugly, noisy
fast and it’s there for all to hear on the process, then Sub:stance have Aeroplane mix of David Rubato’s ‘Circuit’ and hardcore, but all underpinned by the single
Scuba's mix. nailed it at fi rst ask. Now where did we Kasper Bjorke’s ‘The Great Derange- thread of electro percussion. As a result, this
Beginning on Sigha’s sumptuous, put our passport? Allan McGrath ment’. Ben Arnold is a pretty soulless pursuit from beginning to
sunrise ambient sweeps and Airhead’s end. Ben Arnold
096
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DJ481.compilations.indd 96 30/11/09 16:36:11
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