Mosaic Vol. 2 [Exit Records]

It feels almost redundant to be reviewing this but just in case anyone has somehow slept on what is definitely one of the best compilations of 2013, then feast your ears on Mosaic Vol. 2. Bringing together some seriously deep and innovative cuts from thirty different producers and spanning four plates of vinyl for the wax enthusiasts, Exit have truly outdone themselves.

Among the standout tracks (and this is a tough choice given the quality on show from all concerned) are the glitchy madness of Rockwell’s *)*[808], the lush halfstep liquid of Synkro’s The Way and the classic Fist Level 2B from Insta:mental (only been waiting three years for this one guys…)

Elsewhere Kryptic Minds deliver a fantastic slice of moody halfstep with Burnt To Ashes (a rare return to the 170 tempo since their exit to Dubstep realms several years back), Om Unit and Sam Binga collab on some deeply hip-hop/footwork influenced business, and Fracture & Dawn Day Night bring us the sounds of the ghetto on Sick Wid It. Check out clips of every track below and watch out for this one dropping on digital July 29th with vinyl following on August 5th.

Spectrasoul – Delay No More – The Remixes [Shogun Audio]

Spectrasoul - Delay No More - The Remixes

Shogun bring us another eclectic selection of remixes, this time of tracks from Spectrasoul’s recent LP Delay No More. dBridge delivers a respectable leftfield 170 rework of Momento with some nice filtering on the main break and James Zabiela delivers an appropriately catchy house reflex of The Curb, but ultimately the highlights are found in the other remixes on show.

DLR turns in a tidy remix of Sometimes We Lie, fusing the soulful elements of the original with a beat and bassline combo that’s techy enough to move a floor without overpowering the tune. Next up the ever innovative Rockwell gives Echo Park the glitched up trap/juke/hip-hop treatment, creating a fantastic blend of synth euphoria, hip-hop back beat and hench bass stabs. Methinks Mr Rockwell has been listening to a lot of EPROM lately, not that it’s a bad thing!

Lastly CMX (nee Commix) turns in a superbly weird rework of Away With Me, dropping the tempo way down and creating a break from distinctly unconventional samples. In the wake of the ludicrously smooth Calibre remix of this tune that dropped last year, it’s good to see other producers taking a totally different direction. Look out for the EP dropping July 22nd.