Nightmares On Wax
Sound Of N.O.W.
(Matador/Warp)
After about a year hiatus from releasing Carboot Soul, the long-running (one of the first artists to release on the Warp label) Nightmares On Wax is already back with a new 6 song, 35 minute EP. Considering the last break between albums was over 4 years, it makes it seem like George "Herbs" Evelyn is pumping out the new songs.
Actually, saying there are 6 'new' songs on the disc is kind of misleading, as there are really only 2. The first one of these is a collaboration with De La Soul on the track "Keep On." The track is pretty decent in a bland hip-hop sort of way (it doesn't even sound particularly inventive for a De La Soul track), and it doesn't help that the two different mixes of the song on the disc don't really sound too different at all. The other new track on the album, entitled "Morse," is a nice, laid-back number that sounds like the backbone of it was constructed from a theme tune to a 70's sitcom. It's cheesy, but smooth.
The other tracks on the disc are all remixes of older tracks, including and Alex Gopher mix of "Finer" off Carboot Soul. The other two remix inclusions dip way into the back catalogue of N.O.W. with tracks remixed off of Smoker's Delight. The latter two tracks are expecially good, as Rea + Christian turn "What I'm Feelin" into something that Kruder And Dorfmeister would be jealous of while DJ Food skitters out "Dreddoverboard" with some wild snares, pushing it nearly drum and bass mode. Overall, it's not a super-exciting, but if you're into the jazzy downtempo stuff, you could still do worse.
Rating: 5.5
