Beastie Boys
Absolutely stunning as per usual. Stupid shouty lyrics combined with a slightly more programmed backing than usual. The Beastie Boys continue to prove that to be the epitome of cool you have to be as uncool as you can be. Just look at Jarvis.
Breakbeat Era
Breakbeat Era are Roni Size, Lennie Laws and DJ Die. With Breakbeat Era they have created a brilliant slab of drum and bass that builds on the work Roni Size has done with Reprazent. Breakbeat Tera (the DJ Die remix) is absolutely superb, with a brilliant double bass line and some great breaks.
Pulp
The stand out track from ‘A Different Class’ with Jarvis taking the part of his estranged Father doling out advice. The band create a perfect Motown pastiche behind Jarvis’s top notch crooning and there are perfectly placed handclaps in the chorus. What more could you ask for?
Fatboy Slim
Pretty damn spot on. Another stoopid tune from Norman Cook combining some great breakbeats, an insidious vocal sample and a couple of great guitar lines. The bit where it breaks up and goes all high pitched is painful and he mucks about with the pitch control something rotten but you get the feeling he’s having fun.
The Propellerheads
The metal track off ‘Decksandrumsandrockandroll’. The one without any Bond associations and also the least subtle thing the Propellerheads have created. Compared to Rockafella Skank it sounds like its trying far too hard and it’s guitar riff is lumpen and overproduced.
Sonic Youth
The great thing about ‘A Thousand Leaves’, Sonic Youth’s last album where this comes from, is the abundance of melody shot through it. This track is a perfect example as the guitars chime away whilst Thurston drawls over it. Even the chaotic middle part is fairly melodic and there is a pure Sonic Youth moment as the tune emerges from the noise sounding better than ever.
Scott 4
The b-side to this is a twenty three minute track called ‘You Set The Scene’. This track is fairly significant as it is the first successful fusing of country music and krautrock. The Can like repetitive instrumental is offset with an undercurrent of banjo. The whole track is actually a very accessible pop tune just spread over twenty three minutes with the most bizarre set of instruments included. ‘Your Kingdom to Dust’ is more usual fare with a growly vocal and cool lyrics over an acoustic guitar groove.
Thievery Corporation
Dub with a capital B for bass. Clean drum lines, bass so low it hides under the desk and nonsensical vocals. Lee Perry, Rockers Hi-Fi, a fair amount of dope and a cracking single.
AsianDubFoundation
Rapid drum loops, a great mellow chorus and a considerable truckload of passion make this single a thrilling listen as Asian Dub Foundation straddle as many genres as possible in order to get their point across. The spectre of Senser occasionally raises it’s head with a couple of dodgy raps but overall it’s another great single from a band who look like getting a few festivals going this summer.
Mansun
Mansun are one of those bands that you can spend hours arguing over why they are quite so crap but can never quite put your finger on it. The retro-Bowie’isms are pretty feeble but forgivable, the amount of high pitched whining by Paul Draper echoed by the trebly guitars is irritating but not a hanging offence and the considerable lack of imagination is diabolical but other bands are worse. Maybe it’s just the way they combine all these things into such an offensive that really riles.
Mojave 3
I was so angry about Mansun that Mojave 3 kind of passed me by. Their acoustic balladry is fairly anodyne anyway so it’s not much of a surprise but they do posses a kind of fragile beauty that is kind of affecting if you’re in the right mood. I wasn’t.
Mandaley
Airbrushed nonsense in the same ball park as Robert Miles. Bad news.
Intergalactic
(Grand Royal)
Breakbeat Era
(XL)
A Little Soul
(Island)
The Rockafella Skank
(Skint)
Bang On
(Wall Of Sound)
Sunday
(Geffen)
I Want To Be There When You Come
(London)
(A Thievery Number)
(4AD)
Black White
(FFRR)
Legacy
(Parlaphone)
Who Do You Love
(4AD)
Beautiful
(V2)