dj shortkut - blunted with a beat junkie
second reggae mixtape for antidote with the first being by madlib hammering the trojan catalogue to a blunted death in serious cut-n-paste style. this, however, is similar, yet very different. the track selection is not restricted to just trojan, as dj shortkut (aka johnathan cruz), has spread his track demands far and wide over the vast music that is reggae. making for a superb mix which takes in well known classics ('john holt's lovely 'ali baba', the pioneers 'na na hey hey' to name but 2), as well as some complete unknowns to most casual listeners. the flow is a much more laid back affair than madlibs previous mix, with each track getting time to breath and live a little before being cut up in its tracks. so, over the hour we get a dubbed up section, a weed influenced part, and lots of lovely soul infused ska, and of course some quality rocksteady, does life get better than this stuff ?
dj shortkut does add a little of his turntable skills and indeed there are even a couple of brief guest appearances from his hip hop collective, but these do not detract from the sheer pleasure of the old scratchy vinyl grooves which are the real stars of the mix.
so for the perfectly chilled out, soul enriching, rumbling bass line soundtrack to the summer just check the tracklisting below and dive in.