The gunholders of Versatile Records are back with a new compilation. They saved their most deadly cartridges for this total overkill record of exclusive remixes, some of which are available on CD for the very first time. They open the album with a shot straight to the head: "Silent Distance" is a classy pop track remixed by I:Cube featuring Clara Hill's beautiful vocals. Then comes the UFO manga-style track "Ongaku" which blends Chateau Flight's unique electro dub touch to the surprising vocals of shibuya girls, Paris Japanese Choir. Joakim presents us his latest dancefloor killer, the hypnotic "I Wish You Were Gone," haunted by the spook of Ian Curtis and sung by Joakim himself. Then the very trippy remix of "Superflight" by Maurice Fulton comes as a necessary recess before full electronic fire with tracks "Rumours" by As One (aka Kirk Degeorgio), "Arp Surface" and "Chicago Sur Seine" by I:Cube, or "Surface And Submerge" by Basic Soul Unit. At last, the very cosmic track "Taurus" extracted from I:Cube's Live at the Planetarium waves a white flag to finish off the compilation. 2006.

Studio One Scorchers highlights the strength of Studio One's instrumentals. Surprisingly, instrumentals were chosen fifth in Soul Jazz's Studio One series. The foundation and hard selling point of all of Studio One's hits have been the pure strength of their instrumentals. DJ's and singers were able to rock their melodies over top of the gifted instrumentals and make themselves stars. Studio One Scorchers shifts the spotlight onto those who provided the basis for all of the success. Of these 19 tracks, none passes by without note. Many tracks provided hits for reggae stars 20 years after they were originally released, and have come to be associated with twelve-inch singles far removed from their roots at Studio One. The pure quality of the tracks makes it easy for musicians to revisit and shape versions of them. In the liner notes to this collection, these tracks are claimed to have been selected from a possible 915 instrumentals that were, for the most part, equal to the ones that made it onto the album. The sheer volume of output from Studio One is astonishing, combined with the fact that the quality of the recordings never seem to diminish. These instrumentals touch on ska, rocksteady, dub, and begin to hint at the reggae sound of the late '70s. Each instrumental is perfect and has the feel that it could hardly be improved upon. Soul Jazz has once again put together a wonderfully rounded collection of music from Studio One. These purely instrumental tracks have a sound that is entirely complete and lack nothing that a singer or DJ could offer. ~ Matt Whalley

Icelandic producer Valgeir Sigurdsson is best known for his work for other artists (Bj�rk and Bonnie "Prince" Billy, mostly), so it actually comes as no surprise that his solo debut...comes as a surprise. It is a "producer's record," in that Sigurdsson called in favors across the board (although, no, Bj�rk is not part of the adventure), lining up a revolving cast of musicians and three singers: Billy, Faun Fables' Dawn McCarthy, and Machine Translations' J. Walker. However, despite all the diversity among constituent parts, the whole remains surprisingly -- that word again -- consistent. In fact, listening to Ekvilibrium helps you pinpoint and sum up what Sigurdsson brings to other people's records. This debut features quiet electro-acoustic folk pieces made of delicate electronic textures, lushly scored acoustic instruments (lots of strings, subdued piano courtesy of Nico Muhly, occasional brass instruments), and a dreamy feel. In other words: simple compositions developing through complex arrangements. Ekvilibrium contains ten tracks, including four songs and six instrumentals. The album begins with one of KTU's Samuli Kosminen's rough-edged beats ("A Symmetry"), followed by the first song, "Evolution of Waters," the first of two tracks penned by Sigurdsson and Will Oldham. The first half of the album follows a general curve toward the orchestral peak of "Winter Sleep," featuring a ten-piece ensemble and a gripping vocal delivery from Dawn McCarthy. After that, things boil down toward "Kin," Billy's second song. If the songs are more immediately grasped, the instrumentals also provide their fair share of highlights. Highly recommended to fans of post-rock and modern folk. ~ Fran‡ois Couture