Abstract Index Playlist - September 24/08

Dub Gabriel's always had a way with artwork. Without question, Anarchy and Alchemy is the best music I've heard from him. He has really sharpened up his sound and at times, he achieves results that rank with some of the best dance music of this year in any genre. The bass presence on this album is constantly menacing. Every single ragga-voiced track on this album hits hard with atypical rhythm programming offseting the immovable bass foundation. The tracks get better and better over the first half dozen selections with abrasive lyrics and elegant deliveries enlivening these focused and brutal rhythms. Dr. Israel’s hypnotic singjay style on “Battle of the Righteous Man” was a multiple times-daily favourite of mine a couple of weeks ago (I'm still feeling Dr. Israel's Inna City Pressure after all these years). I'm not won over by every track on the disc but the highs have staying power.

Podcast

let's go - ken aldcroft (trio)
bloody nose - capillary action (pangaea)
bacchanal - pigeon funk (risquee)
mashout - dub gabriel feat jukali (destroy all concepts)
like a baby's kiss - a filial (verge)
defenestrado - sonantes (six degrees)
i believe in you - amp fiddler/sly & robbie (strut)
bani - toubab krewe (upstream)
bokoor sound special - lightning head (lion head)
first communion - gang gang dance (social registry)
the peacemaker's chauffeur - jason wilson (no label)
cameo - lina allemano four (lumo)
i'm thankful - quantic feat. spanky wilson (ubiquity)
jericho skank - jackie mittoo & ernest ranglin (studio one)
surfin' - ernest ranglin (antilles)
denko - oumou sangare (nonesuch)
warrior - jason wilson (no label)
picture book in dub - simply red rmx. by adrian sherwood (echo beach)
hold on - sugar minott (moll selekta)