dr rubberfunk - the first cut
having read the good doctors posting on various message boards over the years i was thrilled to see he had got an album sorted.
as those boards were mo'wax and ninjatunes i think you can safely assume the style of grooves we are going to to be subjected to. what did come as a surprise was just how much i have fallen under this albums spell.
there are the prerequsite hip-hop beats, loops, samples. what is different to other fellow beat travellers is that this sounds completely genuine. this has such a downright funky vibes. the added horns, jazzy guitar licks, spoken samples, wah-wah guitar. 'b-boy blue' has the most laid back funked up style that i have to admit that goosebumps have become a standard extra when this track starts .. a wonderful wonderful start .. which leads into a much more familiar style in 'harry the guitar' more beat based (suspect that the drums are played by the good doctor himself and then these loops are filled out with found extras .. of which are a highly guarded secret). this track adds acoustic guitars, looped strings and a vocal sample which holds it all together. special stuff, and were mo'wax still the force in instrumental hip-hop a la 95 then this would be very much included on any decent headz compilation.
these 2 tracks are excellent openers .. the grooves mellow and a lot of smooth jazz comes into the mix which normally would make my blood boil but somehow this has been avoided. 'latin player' has its spanish guitar licks again fleshed out with strings and squelchy synths .. if you heard this while sunning yourself on some cool costa then the world would feel perfect.
next up is a jazz piano loop all cut up and looped with a minimal scratching and extras .. very much a jazz hip-hop groove .. but with little of the chinstroking worrying factor.
not all the lp falls under this type of old school triphop tag though .. several tracks add a more lightweight uptempo sunset beat and therefore adds an extra dimension to what could be a straightforward beatsheads album. for example 'the owner' is an old style house track .. remember darryl pandy .. well there is a vocal sample added to the minimal chicago deep house that recalls his type of powerhouse vocals .. a good'un that should have the right body parts parts moving by the close of the track ..
but, the track that has really got under my skin is the albums centrepiece 'the disco scene' an obvious homage to a scene that refuses to die gracefully. here, rubberfunk has created a wonderful track .. adding a whole array of samples ... some spoken, crowd reactions, and cutup maestro steinski's lesson part 3 type of directions to a damn fine amalgamation of horns, funky basslines, drumfills etc .. standout stuff. which then drops into a deeper jazz drum/piano/flute (flute !?) loop, adding mental images of snoopy and woodstock doing their little dance, which is always a bonus. knowing rubberfunks love for rare poets of rhythm 7" i was concerned that i wouldn't get the feel for this lp - as i dont really go with the jazz thing .. but despite my original concerns i have spun this album far more times than i should .. dr rubberfunk has really put a lot of effort into his samples/production and his genuine love for music shines throughout.
want to hear a clash of dj shadow/funk/lost soul horns .. go no futher than the good doctors website and get this ordered .. well needed medicine for the winter months ahead ..