VARIOUS ARTISTS – DJ KICKS: FOREST SWORDS (!K7)

You wait for a compilation with a track from a Bulgarian choir, and two come along at once! Forest Swords uses ‘Pilentsee Pee’ from the London Bulgarian Choir, the exact same piece of music Agnes Obel used for part of her recent Late Night Tales release. Here it appears towards the end of a 27-track mix chosen to reflect Matthew Barnes’ contemporaries and past inspirations. It is a heady mix, at its most recognisable bringing in Neneh Cherry’s ‘Blank Project’ and Orbital’s seminal ‘The Box’ (part 1) but elsewhere it enjoys throwing the net wider to catch Animal Collective remixing Pantha du Prince, Kara-Lis Coverdale’s lush and rather weird ‘Imgs / r’ and Deena Abdelwahed’s ‘Walk On, Nothing To See Here’. Such a wide range of influences could lead to chaos, but Barnes has organised them in a logical order that works really well, adding his own widescreen track ‘Crow’ as the bonus contribution from the DJ. A fascinating insight into Forest Swords’ musical make-up, while again providing a wide range of artists to explore further. Inventive, quirky and inspiring in equal measure.


Ben Hogwood
4 out of 5