Mike Shannon's Cynosure may not be known for diva vocalists, but ten years will soften any label's heart just a little bit. "Under the Radar" sees Shannon collaborating with Berlin-based singer Fadila, who says her piece four separate times on vinyl with very different backings. Shannon's mix is a piece of rubbery tech house that eventually swells to include shimmering keys which allow for Fadila to float in and out of radar range. Ricardo Villalobos, meanwhile, turns in a remake that—at first, at least—seems unremarkable until he switches over the snare to a slimmer version for the second half and similarly gives only a little help to Fadila, making her the haunting center of attention.
On the flip, Deadbeat does the honors providing a typically dub-wise take on the original. While the sound palette is similar to much of what Deadbeat offers in his usual work, there is an urgency that is often absent from his purposefully drifting dub. Here he means business, pushing things forward and dragging Fadila along with him. Closing things out, Rozzo of Mountain People does what he knows best, drafting a bouncier house take on the original, one that is happy to add in its own deep bassline and keys. It's the least successful of the three; neither properly ebullient nor restrained, it carves out a middle ground somewhere in the region of mediocre. Nonetheless, with three other versions worth a spin, you'll likely find a mix to play here with no problem at all.
On the flip, Deadbeat does the honors providing a typically dub-wise take on the original. While the sound palette is similar to much of what Deadbeat offers in his usual work, there is an urgency that is often absent from his purposefully drifting dub. Here he means business, pushing things forward and dragging Fadila along with him. Closing things out, Rozzo of Mountain People does what he knows best, drafting a bouncier house take on the original, one that is happy to add in its own deep bassline and keys. It's the least successful of the three; neither properly ebullient nor restrained, it carves out a middle ground somewhere in the region of mediocre. Nonetheless, with three other versions worth a spin, you'll likely find a mix to play here with no problem at all.
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