Reviewed by Andy Cooper

This album has been conceived out of the desire of like-minded producers seeking to create dance music with a spiritual focus and attitude..74 minutes of progressive house and intelligent drum and bass, says the cover. And it s not wrong! This is a fine, (mostly) instrumental selection from a variety of producers in a variety of styles. The familiar includes Ikon (Paul Cooper) with two lengthy (that s no bad thing) offerings, one of which is also found on the latest Abundant compilation album. Joey Davis (Faith Massive) presents a tune in his familiar smooth, vibey d n b style, while Formant (Jamey Wright, the artist formerly known as DJ Seven and who has also contributed to Faith Massive) gives us two rather useful progressive house pieces, the first of which provides a welcome departure from the usual four-on-the-floor pounding bass. His second tune, Inner Peace, I m sure will be appreciated by many DJs and devotees of the dancefloor. A new artist, Cedar (Jon Schorah from Leeds) debuts with two mature drum n bass masterpieces, though they are not unlike what we have heard from Trip and Faith Massive in recent times. Inspired (three fellows from Florida) are another new act, with a laid back semi-ambient house number which reminds this reviewer of the old Virus albums from N-Soul. Finally, Stark (a collaboration between Ikon and Cedar) rounds off the album with a trippy meditation on what sounds to me like a sermon sound bite from Billy Graham. It is hard to find fault with any of the contributions to this collection. A good example of what (mostly) independent artists can achieve when given the opportunity to go public with their efforts. I look forward to volume two!

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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