| |
Review: |
|
Corner Of The World, the second album by Solus 3, was one of my favourite releases of 2011, so it's fair to say my ears pricked up when a remixed version suddenly popped up from nowhere. With moments of real beauty and dub brilliance scattered throughout its fifty odd minutes, Corner Of The World is probably ideal material for other folk to get their mucky hands on and have some fun with. And it doesn't disappoint either. I haven't done the scholarly thing and sat and compared the remixes here to the original versions, but neither have I had any inclination do so - some of these versions work so well that there is a part of me that is almost reluctant to go back in case the odd original suddenly disappoints in comparison. I'll also spare you all the remix details if you don't mind, as typing things like Lucidity Lo-Fi Nocturnal DB Remix can get a bit mind-numbing, and just concentrate on the contents instead.
The Art Of Noise take on the opening Tricked By A Monster which gets things off to a flying start, bringing to mind those excellent early 90s Invaders Of The Heart albums with added vigour and a noise that sounds like an elephant warning off unwanted visitors. Lollardy is given the D'n'B treatment whilst Porn Jam, possibly my favourite track on the original LP, opens like Danny Thompson playing over the Spongebob Squarepants theme, before some heavy beats pave the way for the killer riff. This one takes a while to get going, but by the time the harp and wailing make their presence felt, it's a thing of beauty.
There's a couple of dubby versions of Corner Of The World's title track, one all dreamy and floaty, the other Augustus Pablo-like. There's also two takes on Unfold, one of which comes on like Massive Attack's classic Unfinished Sympathy. The album ends how it begins, with a version of Tricked By A Monster. Massive Attack again spring to mind, albeit – thanks to those skipping beats - a Massive Attack who are feeling unusually sprightly. One of the finest numbers here for me and a great way to end the album – and one that whets the appetite for future Solus 3 releases rather nicely...
|
|
