Album Review: Shapes 10:01 - Various compiled by Robert Luis

Robert Luis is responsible for A&R for Tru Thoughts and this very affordable compilation (a two-disc set retailing for £4.99) represents his hot tips for 2010.

With Tru Thoughts' general focus on high quality funk and soul the result is consistently good, if sporting few surprises.  On the whole this is a trip through the record crate of someone who clearly knows their stuff, but admittedly a little more here than anyone but the purist needs.  Given the extremely good value for money however, it would be unfair to complain so instead BlackPlastic suggests the listener focuses in on what transcends the barrier between good and great.

So pretty much everything is good, in a 'won't offend anyone' kind of way but some of tracks included inevitably stand out. Azaxx's rough stop-start funk 'Play Again' is as much hip-hop as soul or funk and amongst some of the slightly blander tracks on Shapes it definitely stands out.  Similarly, the epic, almost David Axelrod-esque eponymous 'Stonephace' really carves a place out for itself, leaving whimsical female soul vocals for dust and concentrating on blowing your mind instead.

Shapes 10:01 is a great taster for Tru Thoughts in 2010 but at times the sheer quality of tracks like 'Stonephace' just mean the overall package is in danger of feeling bland. Ultimately though the only real criticism that can be levelled at this album is that it is too much - a stripped back one disc set would have been so full of future classics that it would unquestionably justify its existence, but with so much available for such a low price BlackPlastic can't help but recommend people pick this up.

Shapes 10:01 is out now on Tru Thoughts, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD for just £4.99 [affiliate link].

Album Review: Volume Two - She & Him

There must be a beautiful world out there somewhere where film stars are always wonderfully interesting and where they make lovely pop records that are actually a pleasure to listening.

Whilst you carry on the search for this world BlackPlastic is happy to settle for one such star - the rather appealing Zooey Deschanel. So, fanboy yearning put to one side - Volume Two is Deschanel's second collaboration with musician M. Ward and, as She & Him, follows up on (you guessed it) 2008's Volume One.

So avert your eyes from the BlackPlastic "Alternative Electronic Music" masthead for a few minutes because Volume Two is gently crafted sixties-pop-cum-country music. And we can't help but go a bit doughy on it. What Deschanel lacks in vocal range she more than makes up for in the ability to pen a nice tune and M. Ward's backing does a perfect job of providing the perfect environment to make Zooey shine. The best examples, where the vocals and the music swell in unison as on 'Don't Look Back' and 'Lingering Still' ("And the world's like a science and I'm like a secret" Zooey sings convincingly on the latter), capture a wonderfully kitsch sparkle that transports BlackPlastic to a summer's day.

Compared to Volume One this outing is superior in all ways bar one. Since Volume Two is a more consistent yet more varied album, BlackPlastic can only be disappointed by the fact that there is nothing quite as joyfully edible and sumptuous as Volume One's 'Why Do You Let Me Stay Here'. It's an unfair, churlish criticism perhaps but it ensures that both albums still deserve a listen.

So ultimately Volume Two is the same joyful ye olde fashioned pop music as Volume One. It's warm, arms-open retro hugs.

BP x

Volume Two is out now on Domino, available from Amazon.co.uk on CD, LP and MP3 [affiliate links].

Album Review: In Evening Air - Future Islands

In Evening Air is Future Islands' first release for Thrill Jockey and their first album to be released as a slimmed down three-piece.

Opening with 'Walking Through That Door' In Evening Air is a captivating listen from the off. It is an album with a beautiful dream-like quality that manages to take disparate reference points and brings them together beautifully.

The vocals alternate between gravelly Dylan ('Long Flight') and statuesque Bowie ("Swept Aside"). And that isn't all - In Evening Air is in turns ethereal (on the title track - think David Lynch and Twin Peaks) and youthful and overwhelmed (reminiscent of Sofia Coppola on the beautiful "Long Flight").

There are clear nods to on In Evening Air to post-punk, particularly Joy Division and Echo and the Bunnymen, and the electronics and emotional punch are pure New Wave. It's little surprise then that Future Islands refer to their own sound as Post-Wave.

But In Evening Air is more than the sum of its parts though. Future Islands sound urgent and insistent and, frankly, desperately delicate. There is so much to soak in across this album's short length that it already feels like an early high-water mark for the year.  Seek it out.

BP x

In Evening Air is released on 4 May on Thrill Jockey, available for pre-order at Amazon.co.uk [affiliate link]. 

Album Review: 4 - The Bamboos

4 is The Bamboos' sixth studio album and on it they largely keep to their existing template of making funk and soul.

And they do it well. Really well.

4 quickly flits between cinematic funk and glorious soul as the mood takes it but the songwriting, playing and production are consistently inspiring.

Sassy opener 'On The Sly' and, later on, 'Kings Cross', both sound like they should be on a Steven Soderbergh soundtrack from David Holmes whilst 'Turn It Up' (featuring vocals from Lyrics Born) would be right at home in a Guy Richie flick. Elsewhere 'Up On The Hill' adds an Oriental vibe yet retains enough snap in the rhythm that it adds a crucial diversity to proceedings rather than breaking the flow of the album.

One listen to 4 and it is clear The Bamboos are not only the real deal but they are onto something. This is an album that manages to do new things yet sounds timeless. Once the rousing soul of 'Keep Me In Mind' kicks in it is obvious that this record really deserves to do great things this year.

BP x

4 is released on Tru Thoughts on 29 March 2010, available for pre-order from Amazon.co.uk on CD [affiliate link].

Album Review: Fabric 51 - Various mixed by DJ T

Perhaps ironic given his pseudonym but out of the heavy hitters within the Get Physical stable DJ T seems to have been the least prolific within the medium of the mix CD. Both Booka Shade and M.A.N.D.Y. have released mixes in the past (in the latter's case seemingly at the expense of ever getting an album out) but this is, to BlackPlastic's knowledge, DJ T's first.

Even more surprising, given DJ T's tendancy for producing club tracks rather than the introspective albums of some of his label mates (Bronnt Industries Kapital or Booka Shade and particularly their The Sun and The Neon Light album) Fabric 51 is surprisingly deep. Refreshingly so.

It is an album that is much slower and thoughtful than BlackPlastic would have anticipated. Michael J Collins eases the listener in with the minimal and atmospheric 'I Just Wanna Be Your Disco Bitch' and with that the pacing is set - nice and slow - for what follows. And what follows is pretty fabulous. The Salax Peep Show Remix of 'A Million Secrets' by Stuffa sounds like some whining indie boys taken straight from the cover of NME yet rapidly thrust into a dubby, emotive minimal workout - and shockingly it works.

This slow, twisted vibe runs throughout the rest of Fabric 51 to create something that really feels different. Danton Eeprom's 'Give Me Pain' sounds like Metronomy meets Hot Chip in a race to the cool indie kid dance floor and the kick, when it hits, is pure joy. And the level of experimental liberalism never fails to land well - even the bohemian 'Jesus Was A B-Boy' from Ben Mono featuring Jemeni hits with well aimed humour. Hell - BlackPlastic recently said that we never wanted to hear DJ Mujava's 'Township Funk' again and yet DJ T even makes us take that back for the Crazy P mix, applied here, is a thing of melancholic joy.

DJ T has undeniably managed to exceed expectations here. Whilst he may be not have the catalogue of mix albums of M.A.N.D.Y. he has just delivered a mix level with some of their best and the finest Fabric album in a good few months.

BP x

Fabric 51 is released on Monday - order now from Amazon.co.uk on CD or MP3 [affiliate links].