In the last 12-odd years Sydney’s The Bird have built themselves a solid reputation as a live act, propelled in no small part by drummer and all round master of whacking stuff, Ben Walsh. Joined by Simon Durrington on keys, Barry Hill on double bass and Bobby Singh on tabla, the quartet make a most delectable blend of DnB and breakbeat, with heavy dub undercurrents. Reinventions, as the name suggests, is a collection of remixes of tracks previously released by the band, and comes to us courtesy of the nascent ForeignDub label.

Sydney-based Semper Fi opens proceedings with his heavy steppa take on Enter the Bird from 2003’s Audible Inventions. It’s a touch lighter than the original, but no less appealing. Melbourne artist Spoonbill takes a twisted trip through weird broken beats with his take on Jake the Pimp – although I’m unsure where the original is from as I’m unable to find it on any of the LPs.

Instrumental hip-hop heavyweights Hermitude bring a heavy jungle flavour to Special Island, adding a little bass, then a bit more… then saying “fuck it” and adding the whole jar. The jittery, broken up drums give it something of a dubstep flavour, making this a definite highlight and a testament to the talent of the Blue Mountains duo. Another well-known duo 2Dogs are also on fire with their remix of Realtime. Dave and Katch (of Resin Dogs fame) take a much more upbeat approach that results in an excellent party track, replete with scratching and sampling. Katch also features on his own with a version of Birdville; leading the track gently down the path towards hip-hop. Melbourne’s Agency Dub Collective re-works my favourite Bird track, Legitimate Dub. Adding vocals and retaining the easy skanking vibe, this can also be chalked up as a success.

It’s probably reasonably obvious that I was a fan of The Bird before I got this LP to review, and this record has done nothing to change that. Some of Australia’s most skilful and talented artists have been enlisted for remix duty, and all have done a good job. The range of styles reflects the eclecticism of the band – there’s very little not to like. Get on it.