Artist: Various (Compiled by Damian Lazarus)
Album: Get Lost 4
Label: Crosstown Rebels
Release Date: 12/09/2011
..............all of which is surprising, considering the imprint's relatively niche sound.
So exactly how, and why Crosstown Rebels has become so influential is something of a mystery. As such, when you put on a copy of the bossman's Get Lost 4, a new instalment in the label's successful compilation series, it's difficult not to murmur something along the lines of ‘go one then, Mr Lazarus, prove yourself'.
16 tracks later and it's safe to say the man in question manages to rise to the challenge. Which doesn't mean this collection is going to change lives and re-write the book on mix albums, but it is really rather good. The sweet, smooth, mildly hallucinogenic warm, techy opener My Way from Amirali belies just how solid the contents quickly become as we move to heavier offerings, making for a few more pleasant surprises than on the average DJ outing.
In short the result is great moments. Not a plentiful bounty, but still the poised, dark and suspenseful breaks-stepper that is Kowton's She Don't Jack provides a pleasing launch pad for the tough, purposeful four fours of Shiva, a bass-focused roller, creating one of the best track to track movements we've heard committed to CD in quite some time, momentarily changing the album up a gear, into something far clubbier.
Those looking for party bangers will, obviously, still be disappointed mind, but further examples of fodder sure to get the kitchen moving can be found throughout the mix. Metallic Itallic's Dance Disorder, or more precisely the Massimiliano Pagliara Remix, veers between a bouncy, acidic 303-line and soulful, vocal house music in a way that should please most, and when Dana Ruh's heads down, tribal-leaning darkroom filler Night Till Dawn takes over the helm it insists on toes tapping with even more vigour than before.
Further down the line thing only get deeper, as twisted electro tinged chuggers (namely Daphni's Ye Ye) give way to submerged downtempo garage (Oliver Twist, which is Avey Tare sounding somewhere between Burial and How To Dress Well). So by the time the dubby pan-pipes and waves of synth arrive to form Mario & Vidis' Kashyyyk, despite the track being unquestionably soft and reflective, it feels like we're being given one last chance to dance properly before the disc stops spinning. It's a good point to leave things on, evoking so many trippy 6am moments, and representing a man who understands his craft, and whether you like his sound or not, certainly deserves our respect.
