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(OM Records/Stomp)
The Bay Area of California is breeding them funky and OM Records have once again proven they’re there to capture the sound. Whereas many OM releases in the past are more focussed towards the house side of things they have by no means been ones to ignore breakbeats. If you need proof of this fact check out this latest release Golden Gate Breaks, a mixed compilation of some of San Francisco’s finest breaks maestro’s.
Breaks fans tend to point their ears directly towards London for the latest sounds from the hippest labels. Whilst the reasoning for this is not altogether flawed (though somewhat limited), any serious fan of the funkier side of breaks must listen to this album for proof that the “breaks” need not be broken down into various sub genres, rather a shared groove can be achieved throughout a combination of breakbeat patterns. What the?
Basically this album covers everything from the deep and funky to vocal two-step to an almost deep tribal sound to a drum’n’bass finale. The feel of the album is instantly recognisable and one associated with many OM releases. It’s the sound of a lot of live percussion and bass with deeply layered and lushly programmed beats. The resultant effect is an album that oozes funkiness. It’s not all hard and banging by any stretch and a joy to have on around the house, as long as you don’t mind walking about with a bit of a skip in your step.
From the opening scratchy beats of Landslide’s Don’t Give Up Now to the deep and rolling UDU Shuffle by Bassnector; the funky sweet vocal laden Lockdown by Soulstice to the deep garage sound of Boswick’s You are the Reason; the percussive Sunpower by Mophono (personal favourite) with it’s almost mowtown sounding vocals to the dubby drum’n’bass of Ivry’s Avalon.
Having seen this album widely available in some of the most accessible chain stores I see no excuse of any of you funky beats fans to not to check this out. Get to it.
