DJ Earl At Juno Download

Review: Bringing further evolution in the realm of footwork, one of the scene's heavy hitters DJ Earl drops this self-assured EP which lets a little heart and soul into the manic machinations of his chosen discipline. Opening track "I Feel It" embraces full-bodied vocals and warm melodies, while "I Need You" gets deep into a Rhodes refrain, all the while twitching away at the heightened BPMs of classic footwork. "Alive N' Well" goes as far as to reach for some chunky Detroit chords, while "Ambienttt" somewhat ironically represents the feistiest cut on the release with a more head-nagging refrain that seems more in line with classic Chicago juking.

Review: Bringing some ghetto swagger to Moveltraxx, juke originator DJ Earl has since moved on to a more linear kind of electro construction on this new EP, but the lurid vocal hooks ensure this feels like a direct descendent of Dance Mania. It's just that here the tracks are fattened out with brazen synths like the 16-bit workout of "Time" or the uproarious snarl that drives "Up Up N Away". There are other moods at work too, such as on the strange blue-note vibe that tempers the rapid samples of "Does Real Good" and the jazz rip up "Miles Away", but all the way through the energy stays at its peak through the dextrous patterns and arrangements.

Review: Still exceptionally young, yet already a legend in juke's evolution into footwork, DJ Earl returns with six new essential 140+bpm beats on the Triple Threat EP. Creating hazy polyrhythms akin to his contemporaries DJ Rashad and DJ Spinn, Earl sets off with the Eastern tremolo stutter of "Triple Threat" before launching into the furious 'work of "Dragged" and the insane soul-sampling "Make U Mine". Sub hits and Dilla-esque cuts dominate "Flexin" while "Without Love" mixes the smooth with the ruff perfectly.

Review: The French were on to the sounds of juke and footwork well before the sound really took hold in the UK, and Moveltraxx have been pushing their own particular taste for the jagged sample loops and nagging drum machines for some four years. This compilation finds DJ Earl in fearsome form, with a nasty vocal getting rowdy with a siren screech of a synth. EQ Why takes things on a deeper level with some moody keys, but it's 'Clent's Knee Deep' that really kills it with a killer slice n' dice of Funkadelic's '(Not Just) Knee Deep'.