VARIOUS ARTISTS
Grime Vol. 2
CAT160CD
Rephlex 2004
10 Tracks. 51mins56secs

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When the name Grime started to drop, hopes were raised for crunchy textures stretched across vital beats, but the graphic design of Grime volume 1 and 2 says something different. If it's possible for the design of a package to be oxymoronic then the Grime series delivers: against a pristine brushed-metal background, an angular typeface forms the title in black with chrome edging that betrays absolutely no sign of corrosion. More importantly, trying to associate the word grime with the spotless sonic surfaces audible throughout these two volumes would require something much stronger than superglue. Real grime gets into your pores, ruins your clothes. Round this music you could wear your very best whites. Best to strike out the word Grime and replace it with Chrome.

Grime 2 follows the format of its predecessor in presenting little clusters of tracks by just three artists. The obvious benefit of this way of doing things – namely that it’s possible to get a better sense of each artist’s style – is balanced by the difficulty of ascertaining exactly what Grime is. It is difficult to be certain whether this is a representative sample of the scene. Ultimately this compilation would be much more convincing if it contained 10 or 12 different artists contributing a single track.

Instead of the Afro-Caribbean influences discernible in Jungle via reggae and its bastard offsprings dancehall and ragga, Grime 2 appears to be coming out of the Asian Underground. The rolling sitar, backward melodic motifs and eastern sounding flutes certainly point in that direction. Track titles like Loefah’s Bombay Squad don’t exactly damage this perception either. The rhythms appear to be the result of an unholy congress between Two Step and UKG. From the former comes the grim(e) determination, a sense of inexorable progress no matter the cost, married to a methodical mapping of form and an intimation that there will be no surprises here. In fact this might just as well be a description of the sort of minimal techno delivered by Plastikman (not the Plasticman of Grime 1, but the bespectacled Canadian). UKG sprays mutant syncopated genes into the rictal Two Step pool, causing crooked shapes to germinate and rise up out of the water. The result isn’t pretty, but it is certainly powerful to the point of likely not wanting to get in its way.

Grime 2 feels like a distinct step forward from its predecessor, with just a little more - and therefore just enough – complexity, but it is still like an MDMA hit that refuses to kick in. Also it still sounds like a fledgling conception, not quite ready to fly the nest yet. Still, its form is at least partially discernible and this compilation is very much worth a listen.

Colin Buttimer

3.5/5

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Everything Is Green
TOY18
Toytronic 2004
16 Tracks. 78mins19secs

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In just a few years, Toytronic, the London-based label set-up by Chris Cunningham (no relation to the video and film director) has imposed its blend of beautifully crafted electronica through releases by the likes of Gimmik, Num Num, Multiplex or Abfahrt Hinwil, Cunnigham’s collaboration with Gimmik’s Martin Haidinger. With the label’s last compilation, Neurokinetic, released four years ago, Everything Is Green is a well overdue round up of current work by some of its artists, including exclusive tracks from Ochre, whose debut album for the label is due out imminently, Gimmik, Num Num, Abfahrt Hinwil and Cunningham’s solo project, Point 7, together with recordings from other artists, from Russian duo Koordinate Of Wonders and Welsh musician Phase Mojo to one time Toytronic collaborator Sovacusa or BOC Scadet.
Remaining faithful to the label’s sonic ethic established over the years, that is beautiful melodic electronica based on warm analogue sounds, the artists involved on this project however approach the genre via a variety of different angles, creating a contrasted, yet consistent soundtrack. From the peaceful sonic landscapes explored by the likes of Abfart Hinwil, Orche or What Kind Of Sound, to the more upfront moments of Point 7’s Higher Contrast Information, Koordinate Of Wonder’s Seventh Spectrum or Low Profile Society’s Running For Headroom, a track reminiscent of early Aphex Twin, Everything Is Green charts some of the most evocative and inviting territories of contemporary electronica. As the stunning picture on the cover and the title lead to think, this compilation presents a impressive collection of luscious moments, revealing the more gentle side of electronic music, yet, with enough glitch and broken hip-hop-infused beats scattered all over this album, there is more to these sixteen tracks than first meet the ear. Although the atmosphere remains gentle and voluptuous, there is often an element of tension to be found in these compositions, as on Cultek’s Minds Beyond or Point 7’s Higher Contrast Information. This has been the common strength of most Toytronic releases up until now, and this album demonstrates that there is no radical change of direction to fear from Cunningham’s label in the near future. Everything Is Green is one of the most consistent and interesting compilations heard this year.

4.4/5

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Sound Bites: A Cookshop Compilation
CKSCD01
Cookshop 2004
14 Tracks. 66mins22secs

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Following a handful of EPs released over the last two years, Brighton-based label Cookshop releases a first collection of tracks from its roster. Refusing to be pigeonholed into one particular genre, the label focuses mostly on cinematic music drawing influences from jazz, hip-hop, cut’n’paste or evocative electronica, reminiscent in spirit of labels such as Ninja Tune or Compost.
Over the course of the fourteen tracks on offer here, with most artists contributing two compositions, Sound Bites offers an insight into the label’s sound and introduces some of its recent signings. The album opens with a collaboration between founding members James Dean, aka Lost Idol, who has previous released music on the Pork Recordings imprint, and La Femme’s Emily Cracknell with Digital Midgets’ Alex Wilford. This short (just over one minute) introduction pretty much settles the mood for the rest album: laidback mood, groovy ambiences and sampladelic sound scope. Recent signing Johnathan Krisp follows with his first contribution, Trip The Light Fantastic. Edging toward slightly dark trip-hop tainted of lounge flavours, this track is a rather entertaining and catchy piece of work. His second contribution, Right Wing Daleks From Surrey, is a slightly more bucolic affair with its gentle melody and lazy beat pattern. Although not entirely original, these two compositions demonstrate however an interesting approach to cool ambiences, echoed in Lost Idol’s A Break For Rain and Slice Me With Your Clear Day, although on a slightly different level. For his contributions, Dean relies on more electronic soundscapes and resolutely more hip-hop-infused beat sections, with jazz influences scattered over his melodic structures. More obvious in the second of the two tracks, these contribute to his sound feeling surprisingly close to acts such as Cinematic Orchestra or Skalpel in places, yet he remains firmly set on his own ground.
The sonic territories explored by Emily Cracknell as La Femme on Monks Wood are more subtle and delicate, with Cracknell adding deliciously sweet vocals to her soft soundscapes, while Never Complain proves one of the more playful moments on offer here. Elsewhere, Outerlectuals and Mr Candu create some late night jazz bar influences on their respective contributions, investigating laidback grooves and hazy melodies.
This first sampler provides an insight into Cookshop’s sonic realm, placing it firmly in the groovier section of electronic music. Combining classic hip-hop influences with cinematic ambiences, the label is closer to the sound of Ninja Tune than that of the myriad of loungetronica clones. A promising first collection.

3.4/5