Breakbeat Recommendations November 2012

Review: The Cuban Brothers' more serious music project, we've been waiting for a new CB's disc to come from A Skillz label for quite some time now. Catchy, sing-along and spiked with a sweet balance of hip-hop and humour, it's got instant appeal and a generous amount of cowbell. Remix-wise Psychemagik goes all nu funk and deep bass while Erb N Dub hits hard with a cheeky jump-up D&B flavour. Mike gets our vote...

Review: Cut & Run offshoot Hot Cakes come good with another load of delicious bootleg action. Here we have the collab of DJ Defkline and Red Polo - a wicked 3-tracker featuring the classic, "Can I Dance" refix which if you don't know, well...you kinda should. Amen Crackhead retouches "Everyone Nose" to create a solid Southern-US flavoured hip-hop booty shaker; whilst "Gypsy Boots" adds a healthy amount of mutant bass to those sweltering breakbeats that just won't surrender.

Review: Emerging German funksters CMC & Silenta bag themselves a team of iron-lipped vocalists for their most accomplished single to date. Both "The Night Is Mine" and "Big Up Booty" bounce with a distinct Freestylers or Deekline & Solo twang - unashamed big room beats coated in chants and sing-along potential. The remixes aren't too shabby either: DJ AKA chunks and chops it while Funkanomics flops his slap bass out. Serious party starters.

Review: Dilemn has put the electro-funk back into the breaks and this was another big year for the French producer. The title track for this EP is an all-out scorcher: melting basslines and slick drum slices all over it - a real grinder! Turn it over and you got "Flying Guitars" a track reminiscent of Pendulum's best moments and Fedde Le Grand combined...absolutely infatuating!

Review: Cut & Run specialises in re-editing hits and transforming them into nastier, hard-hitting breakbeat-D&B hybrids. This time we have a refix of Daft Punk's "One More Time", carried forth by swirling, techy breaks which actually complement those famous lyrics pretty damn well. On the flip, the guys sample Pharaoh Monch's "Simon Says" lyrics and its famous bassline, speeding it up and transforming it into one hell of a monster!

Review: A stern word of advice from Badboe to anyone suffering a flatty on their funk bike... Pump it up! Simple really. Especially when you've got four jams to do the pumping with. All mid tempo swagger joints laced with hip-hop and breakbeat attitude, highlights include the Missy Elliot-sampling nu-funk jam "Green Power Funk" and the more upbeat freak-out power of the Claire G Phunk featured "Whatya Gonna Do For Me". Get pumping!

Review: Uber juicy party flavours right here as Superfort pays a rambunctious homage to the 'anything goes' big beat days. Four tracks in total; each one complete with their own game of spot the sample. We won't spoil the game for you at home but let's just say the mash of Tone Loc and Rolling Stones on "Mind Set", and a well known Free guitar lick on "2nd Act" should drive your dancefloor crazy. Unashamed silly business, the world's discotheques need more fun-fondled funk like this.

Review: Breaks and hip-hop producer Ninelives The Cat comes through with a nagging slice of solid production and catchy vocals in the form of "LaLaLa". The chorus hook will claw into your head like the feline in control, while the choppy funk licks that make up the beat will find a comfortable home on dancefloors all over. On the remix tip, Funkanomics bring an uptempo 80s flavour with filtered guitars and brash drum machine beats, while DJ Alias does a more subtle turn in tightening up the groove of the original. Will Styles rounds things off with an electro-indebted workout full of chunky synths and club-ready construction.