Review: Crosstown Rebels boss Damian Lazarus has described Spirits, the label's new annual compilation series, as "a fresh psychedelic journey into the mind". While that might be over-egging the (Christmas) pudding a bit, there's definitely a deep, humid and occasionally hallucinatory feel to many of the showcased tracks, which mostly sit somewhere between lucid deep house and skewed tech-house wonkiness. Wisely, Lazarus has chosen tracks from new and rising stars of his various labels, with highlights coming from the likes of Magit Cacoon (the bass-heavy, Innervisions-esque "Nonsense"), Raw District (the foreboding last night hypnotism of "Another Way", featuring folksy vocalist Alice Rose) and Nico Stajan and David Mayer, whose brilliant "Killing Your Lover" layers an eyes-closed Jan Blomqvist vocal over dense but groovy tribal drums.
Review: The German label is 12 this year, but as it faces into its teenage life, it retains the same hunger for new music. Get Physical owner DJ T delivers one of the compilation's highlights, a stab-heavy techy take on John Tejada's "Timebomb". Like a slowed down take of Dave Clarke's "Red 2" infused with disco riffs, it sets a high watermark. Nonetheless, T faces stiff opposition from The Martinez Brothers, whose "Issshhh" is all tough percussive volleys and insistent chords, like a tough take on Levon Vincent. Elsewhere, new acts like Siopis and Gorge impress with drum-heavy tools, while old hands Tiefschwarz deliver a spaced out, bleep-heavy version of John Monkman's "Follow Me".
Review: This compilation celebrating ten years of the venerable German label shows that its modus operandi doesn't focus exclusively on trance melodies and low slung electro house. It's certainly true that Get Physical excels at these two variants as the eerie synths and rumbling bass of MANDY's "Word Don't Come Easy" demonstrate, but this only tells part of the story. Soul Clap's "Incoming Bitch (Get Low!)" sees tripped out acid added to the low-slung grooves, while Fuckpony's "Cell Phone Hit" is all jazzed out minimal weirdness. DJ T surprises with the string-soaked "Philly", but he can't compete for sheer out there-ness with Raz Ohara's "El Zahir", a mad mixture of warbling ethnic vocals and dense, organic drums.
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