Album Review: 4 - The Bamboos

4 is The Bamboos' sixth studio album and on it they largely keep to their existing template of making funk and soul.

And they do it well. Really well.

4 quickly flits between cinematic funk and glorious soul as the mood takes it but the songwriting, playing and production are consistently inspiring.

Sassy opener 'On The Sly' and, later on, 'Kings Cross', both sound like they should be on a Steven Soderbergh soundtrack from David Holmes whilst 'Turn It Up' (featuring vocals from Lyrics Born) would be right at home in a Guy Richie flick. Elsewhere 'Up On The Hill' adds an Oriental vibe yet retains enough snap in the rhythm that it adds a crucial diversity to proceedings rather than breaking the flow of the album.

One listen to 4 and it is clear The Bamboos are not only the real deal but they are onto something. This is an album that manages to do new things yet sounds timeless. Once the rousing soul of 'Keep Me In Mind' kicks in it is obvious that this record really deserves to do great things this year.

BP x

4 is released on Tru Thoughts on 29 March 2010, available for pre-order from Amazon.co.uk on CD [affiliate link].

Album Review: Fabric 51 - Various mixed by DJ T

Perhaps ironic given his pseudonym but out of the heavy hitters within the Get Physical stable DJ T seems to have been the least prolific within the medium of the mix CD. Both Booka Shade and M.A.N.D.Y. have released mixes in the past (in the latter's case seemingly at the expense of ever getting an album out) but this is, to BlackPlastic's knowledge, DJ T's first.

Even more surprising, given DJ T's tendancy for producing club tracks rather than the introspective albums of some of his label mates (Bronnt Industries Kapital or Booka Shade and particularly their The Sun and The Neon Light album) Fabric 51 is surprisingly deep. Refreshingly so.

It is an album that is much slower and thoughtful than BlackPlastic would have anticipated. Michael J Collins eases the listener in with the minimal and atmospheric 'I Just Wanna Be Your Disco Bitch' and with that the pacing is set - nice and slow - for what follows. And what follows is pretty fabulous. The Salax Peep Show Remix of 'A Million Secrets' by Stuffa sounds like some whining indie boys taken straight from the cover of NME yet rapidly thrust into a dubby, emotive minimal workout - and shockingly it works.

This slow, twisted vibe runs throughout the rest of Fabric 51 to create something that really feels different. Danton Eeprom's 'Give Me Pain' sounds like Metronomy meets Hot Chip in a race to the cool indie kid dance floor and the kick, when it hits, is pure joy. And the level of experimental liberalism never fails to land well - even the bohemian 'Jesus Was A B-Boy' from Ben Mono featuring Jemeni hits with well aimed humour. Hell - BlackPlastic recently said that we never wanted to hear DJ Mujava's 'Township Funk' again and yet DJ T even makes us take that back for the Crazy P mix, applied here, is a thing of melancholic joy.

DJ T has undeniably managed to exceed expectations here. Whilst he may be not have the catalogue of mix albums of M.A.N.D.Y. he has just delivered a mix level with some of their best and the finest Fabric album in a good few months.

BP x

Fabric 51 is released on Monday - order now from Amazon.co.uk on CD or MP3 [affiliate links].

Album Review: ...And Then We Saw Land - Tunng

Tunng's new album greets listeners like a long lost friend coming in and giving you a big romantic passionate kiss. ...And Then We Saw Land's opening track 'Hustle' is so infectious that offering it upfront without the listener having put in any effort whatsoever feels like a treat akin to early payday in December.

The problem with early pay is that it leaves you feeling short-changed in January as the weeks drag on. BlackPlastic wouldn't go so far as to acuse Tunng of giving us the same feeling but the tone and pace of the album innevitably dips from this heady start.

Yet ...And Then We Saw Land is a lovely piece of melodic folk music that manages to contain electronic flourishes and reflects elements of anti-folk in it's lo-fi feel and the likes of múm in its playfulness. And when it works it really bloody works: 'The Roadside', for example, features a fantastic wandering, almost meandering introduction and builds in a lovely cinematic fashion.

So Tunng's album is by no means a mixed bag - it just has some good bits and some utterly sublime bits, like on that album opener or the stop-start rhymic vocals of 'Sashimi'. ...And Then We Saw Land is a grand day out of a record. A joyful, joyful experience - it feels like a car journey at the beginning of a holiday.

Download 'Don't Look Down Or Back' on MP3 by Tunng, taken from ...And Then We Saw Land [right click, save as].

BP x

...And Then We Saw Land is out on tomorrow, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP and MP3 [affiliate links].

Album Review: Boca Negra - Chicago Underground Duo

Boca Negra - it evokes foreign places, exoticism and, meaning "black mouth" evokes feelings of infinity (it apparently represents an endless consumption of information). And Chicago Underground Duo sound like they should have made house music back when house was a place not a genre.

They don't, however. But Boca Negra is no less exciting for that fact. Instead it is just too damn cool, Chicago Underground Duo's sounds creating an effortless yet sophisticated and ultimately considered melange.

Chicago Underground Duo's album is ultimately a free-jazz-folk-music affair. Yet if, as they say, writing about music is as stupid as dancing about architecture then you could argue that assigning a genre to music like this feels as ridiculous as skydiving about partical physics.

What there is no argument over is the fact that Boca Negra is a beautiful record. Whether soothing, as on the refined and soulful 'Vergence', or obtuse, funky and playful as on 'Spy On The Floor' it is a shattered picture frame of enticing images. In some respects it is a collection of mood pieces but played with such aplomb, such attention to detail that it sounds like the soundtrack to the best movie you have never seen.

Boca Negra is a cinematic album and it is at its best when full of the space and exposed, broken rhythms as on 'Lauging With The Sun'. Like much great instramental music different people will feel different things from listening to Chicago Underground Duo: BlackPlastic feels a sense of wonderment.

BP x

Preview Chicago Underground Duo's Boca Negra by downloading the MP3 of 'Spy On The Floor' [right click, save as].

Boca Negra is out now on Thrill Jockey, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD and LP [affiliate links].

Album Review: FabricLive 50 - dBridge & Instra:mental present Autonomic

dBridge & Instra:mental's Autonomic mix for FabricLive eschews expectations for a drum 'n' bass mix by slowing things down. Right down.

After collaborating on a track together, dBridge and Instra:mental collaborated to form Autonomatic - ultimately a club night with spin-offs, the most significant of which is, as the press release say, ultimately a style of music.

Because FabricLive 50 doesn't just slow things down. It is considerably slower than even a breakbeat set, with the tempo coming in below a chilled out 100bpm. This is still distinctively dnb though, and both dBridge (formerly part of the fairly legendary Bad Company) and Instra:mental clearly know their craft.

The album opener, Riva's 'Seems Like', glides a soulful vocal over a spacious backing that gently melds into Instra:mental's own 'From The Start' but as soulful as the whole thing feels the beats are deep, percussive and ultimately pure liquid drum 'n' bass.

But slow drum 'n' bass sounds about as much fun as stretching out the Queen's speech to last the whole of Christmas day, Boxing day and maybe even right up to New Year's Eve... Surely the point is that it gets you moving, the rolling basslines, pitched vocals, and the last thing we want is more bloody dubstep.

But as we said, dBridge and Instra:mental clearly know what they are doing. Just as liquid dnb made BlackPlastic's heart go aquiver about eight years ago by giving the genre vocals and, as a result, a tune, FabricLive 50 works because of the space the production gets. There are relatively few vocals here as it happens but the speed gives the album an intelligent, soulful feel more reminiscent of Jazzanova and the Compost label than any dnb or dubstep we ever heard.

FabricLive 50 is actually fairly reminiscent of Global Communication's Fabric album (Fabric 26), robotic yet soulful... Ferocious let subtle. By redefining what drum 'n' bass is dBridge and Instra:mental have just pushed a genre forward that desperately needed innovation. Dubstep be damned - dnb died and Autonomic just brought it back.

BP x

Check out the 30-minute promo mix over at Fabric's MixCloud page.

FabricLive 50 is out on 15 February, available for pre-order from Amazon.co.uk on CD [affiliate link].