Rating:
Genre:
Electronica
Release Date: 10/21/2003
The third volume in the always excellent
Solid Steel series comes from another close
Ninja Tune associate, the
Herbaliser project of
Jake Wherry and
Ollie Teeba. Excepting only
DJ Vadim,
Wherry and
Teeba are the most
hip-hop-obsessed artists on
Ninja Tune, and they deliver a volume with fewer of the track-meets-track mash-ups of previous volumes (helmed by
DJ Food &
DK and
Hexstatic), but succeed anyway with a syrupy midtempo flow of
underground rap and
soundtrack funk, a winning track selection, and world-class pacing. (The last two should come as no surprise, considering the quality control on continual display on the
Solid Steel releases.) The best moments are the changeups, such as when
Mass Influence's excellent rhyme
"Analyze" gives way to the
go-go singalong
funk of
Chicago Gangsters'
"Gangster Boogie," or when listeners consult the credits to find that an
a cappella of
"Verbal Anime" (featuring
Dilated Peoples'
Rakaa-Iriscience) is appearing over
soundtrack music from the 1976
Burt Reynolds-
Jerry Reed slapstick vehicle
Gator. Highlights, though, are all over this mix, including the prime '80s
video game electro of
Arcade Funk's
"Tilt" and remixes of two familiar dance tracks (though of previous eras),
DJ Shadow's
"The Number Song" and
Deee-Lite's
"Groove Is in the Heart." ~John Bush, All Music Guide
;)
Listen
