Reviewed by David Bain

Released in 2002, this album followed quickly on from the debut mix CD. Picking up from where that one left off, Alfa One Seven (one man band, Shane Ries) delivers a less experimental but more knowledgeable sound. SP12 (Base9) is the MC who spits frequently repetitive lyrics over the deep, chunky beats. Ignoring the vocals, the tunes are vastly stark, offering punchy hooks to capture drum and bass heads. The strength is in the brutality of the bass lines, which can only be truly appreciated on some shardcore subwoofers. Standout cuts have to be the opening "Speak" with a spacey subtle sample and the massively harsh bass tune on "This Is Where". Enodna raps over "Jump.Spreadout.Mov" delivering one of the fastest and quirkiest raps going, while the excellent beat-boxer Anointed S lays down stabs of talent on "Bring The Funk". When released this album was bang on. However, in this fast evolving genre, it is rapidly dating.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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