EJ2DJ welcomes it's newest reviewer, someone like the legendary Joosman, who's both respected and admired within the eJay circles as someone who is both honest and frank with his reviews. Steve Gilmore runs his own website
and has also made some very tasty tunes himself, some of which are included in our projects. So without further ado, here's Steve's comments to some of the tracks within these projects.
As some of you may remember, some time before the last outage, I reviewed a track that I understood to be Boris's Its a Shame and, to be blunt, I wasn't impressed by it. This also puzzled me because - as far as I was aware - Boris and I shared a love for reggae and its riddims. Now this really stumped me because in the track that I reviewed there wasn't an
ounce of reggae in its puny frame. After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing we discovered that the link I had for the track was nothing to do with Boris, or anyone else we could discover - but
knowing how snarled up Ejay has been of late, this should come as no surprise :) So, to put things right, I decided to do a double header of Boris's stuff and review the two tracks shown above. It's instantly obvious that the mistake was genuine because - from the opening sequences - this is reggae with a capital rrrrr. Having used the same samples myself in a couple of my reggae tunes, there is no doubt that Boris and I are on the same wavelength. Heavy on guitars and rocking like a dancehall queen, It's a Shame forces the butt movement famed all over reggaedom, you know that circle motion :) I am bound to like this stuff and it probably ain't fair to say more than this. Anyone who liked my own previous excursions into this genre will lap this track up like the little honey it is. Great (and very authentic) drum
patterns, incredibly catchy guitar licks and a laid back vocal stylee that's almost falling over it's so doped up.... well nice.
Magnu is an artist whose standard of work is always high, and his melodies are higher still; I would put his 'Key Of Life' track up against anything out there.
Damn but these Mars Flow samples are familiar to me. I think the bulk of them come from Sound Selection 2, and give the lie to the samples sounding old. Ejay samples have - to me - always been head and shoulders above the actual Ejay product and the Sound Selections are no exception. Magnu picks out the very best samples to use in Mars Flow and the track rocks along with a street swagger that would bruise walls. One of the very best things about this track is the recurring piano theme which - I suspect - is going to be used in many an Ejay masterworks to come.
Although I couldn't swear that Mars Flow is likely to be one of my all time favourite Magnu tracks, it is still miles above many of its Hip Hop brothers out there. A class track from a class artist.
AL, like a lot of us Ejay old-timers, has come in for a lot of stick over the years and that saddens me. We all do things in the Ejay community for endless amounts of reasons, some no doubt selfish, some more altruistic. As the guiding force behind the Ejay Collective Mixes (Chilled City was the first of 4 sets) he has been singled out as doing what he does for endless reasons, none of them good. I don't want to be starting yet another AL Vs The Rest of the World flame war here so let me just say that actions speak louder than words.
Then, when I saw that he had released this track, I automatically read the thread and was appalled at some of the comments leveled at this composition. Seems like it isn't enough to make a track these days, for AL that track has to be perfect in every way. Now I'll be the first to admit that Whatcha Gonna Need isn't the dogs meat and two veg, but it ain't the dogs butt end either. More especially, I think AL didn't do himself any favours by giving out a) the first version and b) in lo-fi only. Having listened to the lo-fi version first I would have to say that it isn't a track I would think of hearing in a club, and it does seem to wander around the musical block without coming home a few times.
Then, when I saw that he had released this track, I automatically read the thread and was appalled at some of the comments leveled at this composition. Seems like it isn't enough to make a track these days, for AL that track has to be perfect in every way. Now I'll be the first to admit that Whatcha Gonna Need isn't the dogs meat and two veg, but it ain't the dogs butt end either. More especially, I think AL didn't do himself any favours by giving out a) the first version and b) in lo-fi only. Having listened to the lo-fi version first I would have to say that it isn't a track I would think of hearing in a club, and it does seem to wander around the musical block without coming home a few times.
Having said all that, I honestly can't see that he should have been subjected to the shedload of abuse he got on his 'here's my new track thread'
As many of you already know, when I review a track I prefer to listen to the REAL track, not some cornflakes sounding mofo that would sound crap anywhere. If I can't review a track in its finished stereo version, then I would rather not review it. I just don't believe that any of us can make a rational judgement of a track from a dreadful sounding (and should be streamable) version. So when I saw that AL had released a Radio Mix, I demanded to have the hi-fi URL so that I could do the track the justice I felt it deserved.
What is immediately evident is that AL has sped the track up, and I honestly don't think it needed it. Still, it works well enough, so let's take a look at the elements that make up this track and see whether it will appeal to other folks who do not know about AL yet.
The main motif of the track is supplied by a guitar figure that creates a rolling rhythm that works real well. This motif is dotted here and there with further guitar washes that serve to highlight phrase endings, and - in my opinion - help the track to ultimately work.
As many of you already know, when I review a track I prefer to listen to the REAL track, not some cornflakes sounding mofo that would sound crap anywhere. If I can't review a track in its finished stereo version, then I would rather not review it. I just don't believe that any of us can make a rational judgement of a track from a dreadful sounding (and should be streamable) version. So when I saw that AL had released a Radio Mix, I demanded to have the hi-fi URL so that I could do the track the justice I felt it deserved.
What is immediately evident is that AL has sped the track up, and I honestly don't think it needed it. Still, it works well enough, so let's take a look at the elements that make up this track and see whether it will appeal to other folks who do not know about AL yet.
The main motif of the track is supplied by a guitar figure that creates a rolling rhythm that works real well. This motif is dotted here and there with further guitar washes that serve to highlight phrase endings, and - in my opinion - help the track to ultimately work.
Once again, let me be clear about this. It ISN'T what I would consider a 'club' track, but it is a track that I could quite happily stick onto a CD and take to the beach with me on a sunny day. Nothing like as bad as initial reviews have made it out to be, Whatcha Gonna Need has a tranquil, gentle feel to it that works and works well. It IS let down a little by a mix that isn't quite as forceful and accomplished as one would expect from AL but hey, not one of us is THAT perfect. I'll be hanging onto to this for that sunny day I mentioned, and I would - in fairness - ask you to make up your own mind on it.
There are two people who I blame for enticing me into the honey trap that lives its life as www.ejay.co.uk; this first (and MOST responsible) is Joosman and the second is a guy called Paul Enderson. Now when I first started hanging around Ejay one of the most welcoming people was Paul who at the time was the Site Admin. He has since gone on to bigger and better things (the name PCDJ should ring a bell here) and I'm sure we all miss him greatly.
What most of us also probably miss is his musical alter-ego, in this particular case - White Roots.
As well as doing all the Ejay spadework ya see, Paul is a rapper par excellence. A guy who shares much the same field (and talent) as our ol' fren' Venomous MC. I have herard pretty much ALL WR's output over the last year or so and have yet to hear a track that I am iffy about. Every one had the balls, the sound and the style to leave most other Ejay uploaded tracks (rap or otherwise) in the dust.
See, Paul ain't just a rapper, he's also a very determined producer who probably nitpicks his mixes to a living hell, and the results show this in so many ways. From the opening beats of It's All Good, the production skill is self evident even to the deaf. Although I find WR a softer take than say Venomous, this is not to say that he has any less power and fire in the track - just more
What most of us also probably miss is his musical alter-ego, in this particular case - White Roots.
As well as doing all the Ejay spadework ya see, Paul is a rapper par excellence. A guy who shares much the same field (and talent) as our ol' fren' Venomous MC. I have herard pretty much ALL WR's output over the last year or so and have yet to hear a track that I am iffy about. Every one had the balls, the sound and the style to leave most other Ejay uploaded tracks (rap or otherwise) in the dust.
See, Paul ain't just a rapper, he's also a very determined producer who probably nitpicks his mixes to a living hell, and the results show this in so many ways. From the opening beats of It's All Good, the production skill is self evident even to the deaf. Although I find WR a softer take than say Venomous, this is not to say that he has any less power and fire in the track - just more
subtle is all. And this is one smooth mix of a track, sliding effortlessly from a straight hip hop to a odd ska/reggae rhythm that sounds so weird in print but sounds bloody awesome when heard. Certainly I would have a hard time denying that this was one of his best tracks because - IMHO - it is and a rap track that stands head and shoulders above most of the genre. AND, no swearing either :)
Although DJ Joe is a well known and long standing member of the Ejay community I have yet to encounter him in the flesh (so to speak) and this is actually the first track of his I've ever heard.
Once again, another well produced track that brims over with sparkling highs and deep wompah-wompah bass, exactly how you would expect a class track to sound even. The rap (is that Joe himself) is - to my mind - a little low in the mix, but that is such a minor quibble to be laid at this tracks door it's almost not worth mentioning it. What strikes me most about West Coast Baby is the insistent way the rhythm tugs you from coast to coast in such a fashion that the tracks 3:57 seems to be over in about....oohhh.....0:02 seconds.
A featured track (although not credited properly) on the recent Ejay HH4 promo. West Coast Baby is one of those tracks that catch your attention immediately and doesn't let go until your ears have assimilated each nuance and note it has to offer. Not to mention the tension between the 'wanna be your man' string sections, and the more hippity hoppity side. Takes a master musical chef to whip up this kind of nouvelle cuisine but DJ Joe takes to it like Jamie Oliver to a good advertising campaign. Extremely detailed and very worthy of being included in any discerning Hip Hop collection......even yours...
Once again, another well produced track that brims over with sparkling highs and deep wompah-wompah bass, exactly how you would expect a class track to sound even. The rap (is that Joe himself) is - to my mind - a little low in the mix, but that is such a minor quibble to be laid at this tracks door it's almost not worth mentioning it. What strikes me most about West Coast Baby is the insistent way the rhythm tugs you from coast to coast in such a fashion that the tracks 3:57 seems to be over in about....oohhh.....0:02 seconds.
A featured track (although not credited properly) on the recent Ejay HH4 promo. West Coast Baby is one of those tracks that catch your attention immediately and doesn't let go until your ears have assimilated each nuance and note it has to offer. Not to mention the tension between the 'wanna be your man' string sections, and the more hippity hoppity side. Takes a master musical chef to whip up this kind of nouvelle cuisine but DJ Joe takes to it like Jamie Oliver to a good advertising campaign. Extremely detailed and very worthy of being included in any discerning Hip Hop collection......even yours...
One of the best things about being a DJ is that you can even get your own tracks played :) And here's the big AL to prove that point. I'm not sure how old/new this track is but, musically at least, it does exactly what it says in the title.
Slow and Low it is, with a beat that is so relaxed that by rights it should be horizontal, this is 5:13 of sheer blissout, driven by a drum kit that - by rights - should have been played by Ringo Starr so pedestrian are the beats displayed. However this track, like Starr's drumming is misleading because although it seems to consist of nothing very much, it still manages to power this song to its completion.
Structurally, it's yer fairly typical hip hop/chillout although I particularly would like to draw your attention to some of the lead sounds which are pretty damn neat, and well used, as indeed are the bass sequences. So, Slow and Low, 5am, coffee, cigarettes and a dissolute woman/man (select preference) and no doubt a bit of 'way hay' may occur. Yep, soft, slinky and as addictive as cocaine. In my opinion one of Al's better tracks, and I don't say that lightly.
Slow and Low it is, with a beat that is so relaxed that by rights it should be horizontal, this is 5:13 of sheer blissout, driven by a drum kit that - by rights - should have been played by Ringo Starr so pedestrian are the beats displayed. However this track, like Starr's drumming is misleading because although it seems to consist of nothing very much, it still manages to power this song to its completion.
Structurally, it's yer fairly typical hip hop/chillout although I particularly would like to draw your attention to some of the lead sounds which are pretty damn neat, and well used, as indeed are the bass sequences. So, Slow and Low, 5am, coffee, cigarettes and a dissolute woman/man (select preference) and no doubt a bit of 'way hay' may occur. Yep, soft, slinky and as addictive as cocaine. In my opinion one of Al's better tracks, and I don't say that lightly.
