Drum'n' Bass, a bit of metal and some of the Tobin



Various - MDZ.03

I've always had a soft spot for Metalheadz, the drum and bass label run by Goldie, after spending the odd sunday night at the Blue Note club in '97 (I think, around about that time and location anyway...). So a new Metalheadz collection is always welcome, this one doesn't dissapoint too much, it's enfused with the sort of quality expected, but - and here comes the kicker - I'm left with the nagging feeling that drum and bass is getting itself stuck in a rut. On this compilation there are remixes of Pulp Fiction, Terminator and Angel; don't get me wrong, they are all classics and dropping one in the mix I probably wouldn't have felt the urge to comment, but three? Surely it's time to move on a bit... I'm making this sound like a bad CD aren't I? OK, time to rectify that - if you like Drum and Bass, you should probably own this CD.



Noxagt - Turning It Down Since 2001

More metal, but this ones a little different. This three piece Norwegian metal band, don't have vocals and don't use an electric guitar - instead they use an electric viola. I have to say the overall effect is pretty impressive, after a while the use of the viola seems very natural and complements the traditional stalwarts of loud fast drumming and down tuned fuzz bass perfectly. Bit's of the album remind me of Carcass at there more tuneful, and like the best metal album of all time - Slayer's Reign in Blood - they keep it short and sweet, the whole album clocks in at less than half an hour. And finally, how can you possibly go wrong with song titles such as Pantyland and Cockburn?



Amon Tobin - Verbal Remixes and Collaborations

Hurrah Mr Tobin is back, and he has some friends with him this time. What we have here is a nine track EP, the first five are new tracks each produced by Amon Tobin and a different collaborator; the remaining four tracks are remixes of Verbal from his last album. First up, the collaborations - it's difficult to comment on these as collaborative efforts since they all end up sounding like original Amon Tobin tracks to me - so I'll comment on them as Amon Tobin tracks. Very good, everything in the right place, plenty of well placed and inspired sampling - silly track names, yep all good stuff. As for the verbal remixes, you've got Prefuse 73, Top Gigio, Kid 606 and Boom Bip. I don't know Top Gigio, although they do a very nice swooping remix; the other three do exactly what it says on the tin, although I got the feeling Kid 606 was holding back a little. The Boom Bip remix deserves a mention for being a bit special.