MAD PROFESSOR Vinyl & CDs

Review: Is there a more consistent partnership in UK lovers rock than Pamela 'Aisha' Ross and Neil 'Mad Professor' Fraser? The pair has been working together consistently since 1986 and continue to periodically deliver killer cuts. 'Guide & Protect', which was first featured on the CD (but not vinyl) edition of Ross's 1987 album High Priestess, is one of their best - a sweet, life-affirming affair in which Ross sings sweetly and emotionally atop a typically synth-heavy, dub-flecked lovers rock 'riddim' by the effervescent Fraser. On this 7" edition, an edited version of the 1987 original comes backed by 'Aztec Warrior', a deliciously dubbed-out Mad Professor take on the same riddim featuring echoing flute and brass snippets.

Review: Way back in 1998 when Massive Attack's career-defining "Mezzanine" was first released, legendary dub technician Mad Professor cooked up some radical reworking. They now get their first official release alongside dubs of two tracks that never actually made it onto the album - Metal Banshee: a dub version of "Superpredators" which was a cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Metal Postcard", and "Wire", which was actually recorded for the film "Welcome to Sarajevo". Wild effects, plenty of knob twiddling and oodles of reverb define this freaky late night collection and mark another essential release in the catalogue of the already legendary Mad Professor.

Review: Given Massive Attack's background, it was almost inevitable that they'd release a dub overhaul of one of their albums at one point. That time came in 1995, when British sound system legend Mad Professor - responsible for some of the greatest UK-made dub records of all time - put his distinctive twist on Protection. 21 years on, the set still sounds sublime: a radical translation that frequently bares only a passing resemblance to the Bristol band's original. It's packed with highlights, from the spaced-out, dub-house rework of "Spying Glass" ("I Spy"), to the ricocheting percussion hits and twinkling pianos of "Weather Storm (Cool Monsoon)", and creepy, delay-laden string surges of "Eternal Feedback (Sly)".