Back Catalogue

Review: The new I:Cube album is a rapid-fire collection of tracks woven together (there's a clue in that title you know) which takes the manner of a live set. The idea is essentially to bring the dance music album back to its raison d'etre, the dancefloor. To keep things interesting, the tracks are whipped through with a wonderful irreverence, as cheeky radio interludes and impulsive switch-ups keep things from staying too formulaic. Rather than some vision of a smooth, linear DJ set, this album instead takes the stance of creating pleasure through disorientation. Mr Chaix is a master of alluring grooves, and he uses that gift to really mess with your head when he changes tack, as between the edgy bleeps of "Y.O.U.R.O.C.K." and the light-hearted disco stomper "Get The Fever". Those surprise moves keep you engaged through all 23 tracks of this joyous beast. Chaix's lack of pretension is one of his greatest strengths; the I:Cube way is a direct and satisfying one. At no point is it cheesy or hackneyed, but it never tries to be too clever for its own good. With a live feel to match that immediacy, the "M" Megamix is a triumphant statement of what a dance music album should feel like. It might not be a comprehensive answer, but it certainly puts paid to all those "collection of singles" efforts out there.

Review: If you like to get down with the underground, in those dark and sweaty, smoked filled rooms.. then there is no doubt that the output on the legendary Bonzai is your ear candy. Here on their progressive arm they drop a typically twisted bomb from The Idem. The Original has an abyss like depth that will throw you into a musical washing machine (in a good way), while Planisphere bring more of a dance-floor approach on their show stopping remix. Complete with eerie stabs, a cool spoken vocal, and a constantly bubbling melody. The best tracks of this ilk shine through simplicity, and this is perfect example of that.. Time to get twisty!!

Review: Having waited some 21 years to produce his debut solo full-length, we perhaps shouldn't be surprised that D&B veteran Marcus Intallex has pushed the boat out a little. Yet even his most ferocious fans may be more than a little surprised by the breathtaking scope of 21. There are collaborations by the bootload most notably with Lynx & Danny Fierce, SPY and Zed Bias excursions into two-step jungle, future house and dubstep-acid, and even a suitably atmospheric cover of Radiohead's "Climbing Up The Walls". Plus, of course, a brilliant selection of alien D&B jams in his own inimitable style. It may have taken two decades to materialize, but it was definitely worth the wait.