Mortar & Pestle Vol.1

This tit-bit compilation set its 5 artists a test. Each track had to be “Indian.” We trusted in the ability of the producers on show to team with that theme and deliver us something truly special. And were not disappointed.

First up on the compilation is rising star, and fellow Scot, Polymath. His relentless “Thangra” takes a sole male vocalist and drops him into deepest, darkest acid. The track growls with menace; from the sharp cowbells vanishing into pools of reverb to the snarling bass rising throughout the tracks brisk pace. Next up is Label bosses themselves “Dolby Anol” with their broken sample house track “Hold up” Taking the Indian theme and going moccasin rather than mubai, the track is an incomprehensible vocal house track where you are blasted with approximately one thousand ideas at once at the rate of 37.5 per second..approximately. Power Circles offers up her “Raga” next, a shortened version of the classic Raga structure; a steady progressive piece that just seems to keep on building up. The Uruguayan comes across like a modern day Charanjit Singh. Slowing down the pace is London’s Slimes and his track “Talaq Talaq Talaq”. Here he’s created a groove that evokes the greatest pre club car rides, all be it in New Dehli rather than Stoke Newington. Rounding up the Compilation is the mysterious Baby Diego and his track “Hello Hello”. Baby Diego famously, and rather cheekily, released a version of Duck Sauce’s hit “Barbra Streisand”, it stuck on Radio 1 playlists and clocked up over 150,000 views on youtube. He promises more bad behaviour soon but rounds this compilation off with clinical precision. A slick power house track with huge vocals and a high synth bass thrusting you into a fit of dance floor frenzy.
Artwork by DCWID