roots manuva - awfully de/ep
very clever. see what they've done .. its an ep with versions of the albums lead track 'awfully deep', as well as adding all sorts of extras to the package for the collectors.
to open the ep there is a new electro monster, 'seat yoursefl' featuring ricky ranking. very imposing dark electronic atmospheres proving that roots is indeed at the fore of the uk hip hop genre despite denying any such affiliation. then the title track from the album is revisited in a 'live in the studio' version (with one damon albarn on piano!), while it's kind of cool to hear a new version, i have to say i do prefer the massive boom bass sonics of the original. next up is the stripped down 'metronomy version', where the track is reduced to just a twang and synth noise. very different, and making the verbals much more prominent, that is until things become more mutated as the track veers off into a p-funk styled groove, involving lots of slap bass and george clinton synths. interesting for those that like their g-funk thing. man of the moment, diplo', then steps up to the mixing desk and does his minimal jerky dance for the cool hipster party scene which i'm sure is very current and in vogue, but leaves me a little cold. then to finish it all off there is an edit of the album version which in my opinion stands out by a mile with its echoed sci-fi paranoia and massively addictive vocal loops.
can i mention that album is excellent once more ?