- While I should be sacked for taking the longest time ever to turn out a CD review I have two excuses. One, I moved house and there’s nothing like a move to throw your life into chaos! Two, this CD got stuck in my walkman on endless repeat and I was too happy bouncing to it as I walked down the street to hit the keys when time permitted. Lame excuses I know, unless you know that feeling of hitting a groove, grinning with delight, and then greedily craving more of the same.
Meat Katie’s Destination Australia 02 CD opens with the catchy DJ Shadow track ”GDMSOB”. From there we’re warmed up with a bouncing bassline to take a tech house turn with Gus Gus, signaling that this is Meat Katie territory and you’re going to get a CD that crosses sounds. It’s time to ready yourself for the Meat Katie patented tech-funk with trademark breakbeat ride.
Tiefschwarz bring in the funk element, while Sombionix’s “Newt” steers the CD back on track and straight into a bass roller with “Pipedream”. Don’t settle down too much though because Mark Pember isn’t one to mix a straightup “settle into the airchair” listening compilation. As the CD progresses it twists and turns between tech sounds, storming basslines, catchy vocals, and calmer moments, such as the melodic “Crackwhore” and the minimal funk of “Colt 45”.
The pace and mood builds though with the club favourite, Stir Fry’s “Breakin’ on the Streets”, before gliding into my favourite track of the whole CD. Nothing beats a singalong to this reworking of the Jill Scott classic ”It’s Love”, sung by Andrea Brown on this heavily reworked version by Matrix VS Goldtrix. This is serious dancefloor material with a solid thumping bassline and deep sounds that work just as well in the privacy of your own (karaoke) home.
Nothing prepared me for hearing Umek’s wonderful Voices of Africa Vol. 2” in this mix, yet again demonstrating why Meat Katie excels with his unique sound. Tribal techno framed perfectly in a breakbeat context. Then before you know it, it’s time to wind down with London producer and DJ Will Saul and his remixers Infusion, providing a nice Australia connection.
This is my pick of the breakbeat compilations released in 2003. Get a copy now!
1. DJ Shadow – GDMSOB (U.N.K.L.E. uncensored mix)
2. Gus Gus – David (Medicine 8 8 mix)
3. Tiefschwarz – Acid Soul
4. Sombionix – Newt
5. Double Black – Pipedream
6. Meat Katie & Lee Coombs – The Hum (MK mix)
7. Blakkat Feat. Aswan – The Rite Place (Lil’ Devious Shake-O-Matic mix)
8. Meat Katie & Christian J – Move Me (with) BLIM & Rennie Pilgrim Feat MC Chickaboo – 2 Freaks (Acapella)
9. Kurbcrawler – Crackwhore (Quinn Whalley mix)
10. Triggamen – Colt 45
11. Stir Fry – Breakin’ On The Streets (False Prophet mix)
12. Matrix VS Goldtrix – It’s Love (Trippin’) (Deep mix)
13. Soul of Man - Kickback
14. Umek – Voices of Africa Vol. 2 (Voice 4)
15. Elite Force – Curveball (re-rub)
16. Will Saul – Cliff (Infusion mix)