Dig out the bunting and get that cake ordered - Katakana Edits has notched up its 150th release! Fittingly, it comes from the edit imprint's most prolific contributor, sometime Funk Blasters and Breakbeat Paradise regular Ben Morlack. He begins by indulging his side on 'Something Got Me Started', a wonderfully warm, colourful and piano-rich take on the 1991 Simply Red hit of the same name. Morlack returns to more familiar territory on 'Keep On', stretching out, dubbing out and lightly tooling up a classic, Prelude-era D-Train jam, before reaching for deep, weighty sub-bass and sparse, hot-stepping beats on 'Sugar', which appears to make use of elements from a number of early 90s reggae/dancehall jams.
Volume 010 from We're Going Deep continues the label's streak of exceptional releases, delivering a mix of electro, acid and dub-infused house tracks that hit all the right notes. Versalife's 'Skirmish_101' starts with his style of futuristic, otherworldly electro. Boris Bunnik's precision and creativity shine through, always becoming instantly recognizable. Acid Pimp's 'Acid Baby' dives into chunky basslines and classic acid textures. The well-crafted production captures the timeless allure of the genre while keeping things fresh. Jamie Anderson & Owain K team up for 'Basement Dub', blending dub techno elements with smooth house vibes. Deep, hypnotic and atmospheric, this track is perfect for late-night grooves. Konerytmi's 'Aamunkoitto' closes things with celestial electro, showcasing Kirill Junolainen's flair for intricate, spacey soundscapes. Konerytmi continues to grow his legacy as one of the best electro producers out there. A stellar collection that highlights the label's dedication to quality underground sounds.
The Mysticisms crew is back with a fifth instalment in their Dubplate series and this time it takes the form of music from one of the inspirations for the series itself, namely the not-so-well-known but nevertheless influential Digi Dub label. It was headed up by Lee Berwick and echoed the sound of South London squat parties in the 80s and early 90s. Berwick himself got into music production later on and built a studio around the AKAI sampler before hooking up with other like-minded people to create the LZ Diesel alias. Opener 'For The Love Of' is a timeless digi-stepper with dancehall stylings, super sweet vocals and bongos tumbling freely. 'Suicidial Dub' is more busy and percussive with screwy synth energy and 'Skunk Funk' is a slow-motion melon-melter.
Five Green Moons is the latest in a long line of aliases from long-serving British DJ/producer Justin Robertson, who has spent the best part of three decades blurring boundaries while exploring his love of dub-wise basslines, heady soundscapes and rugged dancefloor grooves. Landing on Pamela Records, the original productions-based sister label to long-serving edit imprint Moton, 'Moon 1' sees Robertson giddily join the dots between heady dub basslines, future dub rhythms, skittish dubstep beats, trippy post-punk guitars, wayward electronica, the ambient dub exploits of The Orb, and the experimental insanity of Adrian Sherwood's most out-there 1980s productions. It's a genuinely brilliant album all told and one that balances weighty hedonism and propulsive grooves with more laidback soundscapes and near Balearic sound trips. Bravo Mr Robertson!
We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you've provided to them or that they've collected from your use of their services.