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Review: ***B-STOCK: Slight surface marks ***


Vade Mecum welcomes Soft Traffic for a debut release here and it is one that suggests the producer has a soft spot for the warm, deep and heady end of the dubbed out techno spectrum. Those are certainly all the words you would use to describe the quiet brilliance of opener 'Find Ya' (feat Prince Morella) which is icy cool and hypnotic. On the flipside, 'Night Drive' is another sublimely soft focus and supple techno roller with infinite horizons and milky pads that dissolve your soul. A superb debut.

Review: Felt may not have made the longest lasting impact on the common conscious, but nevertheless the UK indie set struck a real chord, and are still widely seen as cult icons among those who know. As part of the deserved celebrations for equally revered label Cherry Red's 45th anniversary, we can now dive into one of the band's finest moments, with this double-A 45" single. Opening on 'Primitive Painters' it doesn't take long to realise where we are on the sonic scale. Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser in a duet with frontman Lawrence, it's rightly considered one of the great British singles of the 1980s and one of the decade's most powerful collaborations, saturated in shoegaze and dream pop while still being resolutely part of a New Wave. Meanwhile, 'Penelope Tree' on the flip opts for a janglier but no less epic feeling.

Review: Ras Guerrilla opts for a 10" slab of wax for this new one which features two vocal and two dub cuts. Tony Roots is the man main but also featuring on it are Jahbar I, Clive Hylton from Colour Red association, plus the always eager to impress Fire House Crew with none other than Flabba Holt on bass. Four vital cuts of seriously sick roots and lovers rock fusions with head twisting versions so that all moments in the party are catered for.

Review: 'Faith From Above' marks another addition to the ongoing collaborative series by Indica Dubs and Chazbo. Sporting a distinct blue-themed label, it seamlessly integrates with the previous releases' red, gold, and green labels. Indica Dubs initiates the composition with drums, chords, and bass, paving the way for Chazbo to embellish with his signature warrior-style synth horns and flutes. Subsequently, Sukh expertly mixes several cuts at the Indica Dubs studio, which are then mastered by the legendary Russ Disciples. The result? Crisp highs and resonant deep bass, perfectly tuned to captivate audiences on any sound system.

Review: Two of drum & bass' most rabid underdogs, Nookie and DJ Crystl, the latter returning only recently after a two decade hiatus - make a triumphant return to the foreground, joining Suburban Architecture in aid of the third edition of their Architecture Dubs series. A fresh fusion of old and new motifs, Nookie's remix of 'Renegade Horns' pays homage to a select juncture in the genre's evolution, recalling the era of "intelligent" drum & bass while nonetheless playing into the freshness and cleanliness that could only ever have surfaced after the 2010s. Crystl's version of 'New Horizons', meanwhile, is more refractive and dreamy, taking its required time to bask in its artisanal padwork, in contrast to its raw b-boy sample and frank Amen breaks.