- See all the Ratings
- Add my Rating now
London-based producer Kevin Martin is certainly a guy who’s traversed the more shearing, industrial-edged ends of the dub spectrum, having first emerged as one half of the fearsome Techno Animal alongside Godflesh’s Justin Broaderick before going on to helm the Macro Dub Infection compilations and extracurricular sideprojects such as Ice, God and the Alec Empire collaboration Curse Of The Golden Vampire. Featuring vocal appearances from the legendary likes of Ricky Ranking and Cutty Ranks, Martin’s 2003 debut album as The Bug called Pressure saw him pursuing a trajectory that might perhaps be most aptly described as ‘dancehell’, with the assaultive, politically-edged lyrics matched perfectly by the relentless, slamming riddims and scything waves of electronic distortion.
Curiously when compared to both its predecessor and Martin’s recent 12” on his own Razor X label, this long-awaited follow-up on Ninja Tune London Zoo sees him turning down the levels of sonic aggression slightly, and allowing more dance-friendly garage and dubstep influences to seep into his tracks. Opening track Angry is certainly indicative of this new approach, and while it certainly packs power in terms of both bass and percussive attack, the rougher edges are smoothed out slightly by Tippa Irie’s melodically-inflected vocal delivery and the garage meets fidget-house rhythms that roll beneath. By contrast, the vast, rolling Skeng sits closer to narcotised dubstep, with Killa P and Flowdan’s deep, baritone chat (“Readyfit dem”) matched beautiful by the plunging sub-bass drops, and slow motion, industrial-strength snares.
Meanwhile, Too Much Pain even manages to throw in a slight jazzy shuffle amidst its hard-edged dancehall beats, courtesy of Aya’s soulful croon. Warrior Queen’s two appearances on Insane and Poison Dart meanwhile easily provide two of the biggest highlights here, the latter in particular offering up one of this year’s strongest singles, as Warrior Queen’s sing-song vocal delivery drifts in and out of tune in addictive style amidst slow-motion jackhammer rhythms.
An excellent album that’s been more than worth the wait…and no doubt Martin’s incorporation of slightly more accessible styles is likely to see him win over a substantially wider audience.
Check out www.ninjatune.net
