New Forms II
Monday, May 19, 2008
Back in 1997, Roni Size & Reprazent released New Forms a Drum & Bass cd that featured some of the greatest beats in the genre. This cd even won the convented UK Mercury Prize and beat out DJs such as Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim. What separated Roni Size from most Jungle/Drum & Bass DJs was the inclusion of Jazz and Hip Hop into the beats. The layers are easy to listen to and you don't have that Aphex Twin avant-garde sound that can become quite boring. Roni Size includes many female vocals on the tracks which were very common in the Trip Hop scene. These vocals mixed with the pulsating beats created a warm and organic feel uncommon to Electronic music.
10 years later Roni Size & Reprazent have re-edited and added 4 new tracks to this masterpiece. They have entitled the cd New Forms II and is a must have for any fan old and new. Its easy to write off Electronic music 10 years later since much of it can sound dated. This is the exception tho, if you were hearing for the 1st time most would think its brand new. The cd flows seamlessly between tracks giving you a continuous play feel. Some of the highlights are "Brown Paper Bag", "New Forms", "Hero's" and new track "Don't Hold Back". The styles range from atmospheric to hard hitting Drum & Bass and feature both rap and sultry torch singers.
Roni Size & Reprazent came out of the Bristol music scene which was made famous by Tricky, Portishead and Massive Attack. They expanded the Trip Hop sound but borrowed heavily from some of the arrangements and vocal styles. I can't get enough of this cd and I am torn as to the legality of including it in my top 2008 list. It's a reissue with new tracks but it's not really new. Anyways, I highly recommend anyone who has never heard this cd to pick it up.
Posted by mardenhill 5/19/2008 09:11:00 PM
Labels: Music
