So far this has been a spectacular series with transcendental mix excursions from Luciano, Ewan Pierson, Alex Smoke and Funk D’Void. Now Soma honchos Slam are ready to do theirs and the wait’s been more than worth it. Of all the techno producers to emerge in the early 90s, Stuart and Orde have remained closest to their roots and musical passions while exhibiting an irrepressible urge to progress both in the music they make and what they do with their iconic label. That’s why they’ve signed a huge ten new artists to their label this year, all with mindblowing results so far. Two of those are represented here with their upcoming releases – Jandroide with ‘Grande Coracion’ and Decimal with ‘Eleanor’. Not only that, there’s two new Slam tracks, trailering the new 12-inch Paragraph label shortly starting up; both ‘What’s On Your Mind’ and ‘City Destroyer’ are more experimental than ever, loosely using the Berlin minimal sound as a launch-pad but totally their own concoction, the latter being a classic Slam roof-raiser. Elsewhere names like Anderson Noise, Dante Eeprom, Mathias Meyer and the great Poxy Music straddle the electronic spectrum, seamlessly flowing to peak after peak, nodding to the masturbating stick insects of Cle’s ‘Nomads’ remixed by Mathias Tanzmann or classic Red Planet-style techno of Tigerskin’s ‘Push The Patton’. Slam didn’t take this mix lightly, only laying it down when they were convinced they had the right tracks. Always true to their club background, Orde and Stuart have designed the set as a tribute to their Return To Mono nights at Glasgow’s Sub Club. It works magnificently.
5 Out Of 5
Reviewed By: Kris Needs
