A welcome return for a series that shows just how much musical talent there is to be found in Hamburg. On the evidence of the third volume this talent continues to develop through increasingly influential artists like DJ Koze, Lawrence and Isolée. All are present here, and Koze offers some deep and meaningful house on the excellent ‘XTC’. Deo & Z-Man are also excellent in that regard with ‘Nehmet und Esset’, with a bit more acid on top, while Les Loups offer a classy bit of heat haze house with ‘Fuhl’s Gold’. Meanwhile Smallpeople’s ‘Cricket Orchestra’ is deep and very well crafted, and later treats include Extrawelt’s ‘Splendid Nausea’ and Lawrence’s superb ‘Dawn 808’ – not to mention a Session Victim remix of the Boris Dlugosch classic ‘Keep Pushin’. The sound of a city in very rude musical health.
5 out of 5
Reviewed by Ben Hogwood
