Cold Busted US Schallplatten & CDs

Review: Akshin Alizadeh is Azerbaijan's foremost hip-hop production star, blending infectiously dynamic beats with slick vocal samplework and original instrumental acoutrements. All laid down to solid 7" wax, 'Reasons' is his latest to do so. The track hears Alizadeh flourish and melismate away on the higher end of the piano and the lower end of the guitar, all while creatively making use of a vocal sample from First Choice's 1974 r&b hit, 'Let Him Go', for its sampled chorus.

Review: Belgian producer Sim Nagai is back to take you on a worldly trip with ore of his well designed sounds on this new album for Cold Busted. It will be no surprise to learn once you hear this album that he loves to travel and manages to ably capture that in his work. Equator Hotline is packed with exotica-fuelled beatscapes and transportive vibes. On 'Animal Lithographs' there are lush harp sounds and subtle eastern melodies, 'Floating Through The Delta' is a humid and steamy trip down the river with the gentle patter of hand drums and swooning strings and 'Catching Waves' then carries you away on more gently broken beat loops and sun kissed melodies. This is super warm music for super warm days.

Review: Cold Busted ventures into downtempo and Balearic territory here with Vanilla offering up a limited but 7" full of hazy and lo-fi beat sketches that make you ache for a sun lounger and a warm day. The gentle beats of 'Pointbreak' are offset by wonky and detuned chords that bring a sense of irreverence and 'Surfin' Summer' then casts you adrift on nice lazy sax motifs. 'Remember' keeps the grooves slow and low and 'Breeze' shuts down with another cathartic and open-skied sonic excursion. A perfect accompaniment to some mental escapism, then.