Radio Slave - 'Misch Masch' (Fine) Released 28/05/07

Minimalism, of course, has been a potent force in dance music for a good few years now and as one of the pivotal forces of that movement, a mix from Radio Slave (aka Mr Matt Edwards) is a mouthwatering prospect for any aficionado of the genre. The only poignant question though is whether we have really reached saturation point with minimalism? Can it really delve into more intriguing realms? Fortunately, in this intensely dark, haunting and almost nightmare-ish voyage into minimalism, Mr Edwards is truly the man to prove any doubts wrong - despite it being one hell of an uncomfortable listen.

An extremely personal affair, the crux of this Misch Masch mix are Radio Slave’s very own remixes. Opening the collection, Trentmoller’s ‘Moan’ and Mocky’s ‘Extended Vacation’ are stripped of all their  excess baggage by Mr Slave and are left in their most basic form - it’s only when the volumous bass sirens of Rufuss’ ‘Obsidian Soul’ hammer out do we have anything of significant substance and resembling a tune. Soon, Ricardo Villalobos’ guttural  take on Shakleton’s ‘Blood On My Hands’ signals the start of a darker segue that may be a demanding listen, but well worth it if you manage to persevere.  Indeed, they’re the kind of tunes that could well and truly be panic-attack inducing on a dodgy trip - a state of mind you suspect Mr Edwards was purposely trying to stir up with this mix. The dirty bastard.

There are some moments of light though - for example, Canvas’ bleep-fest ‘The Cat’ gives us a rare moments respite - but such examples are all-too fleeting. The mix undoubtedly reaches an apex with Radio Slave’s own take on Deetron’s ‘Life Soundtrack’ - the underlying tension that’s present throughout the mix is undoubtedly lifted with the pulsing bassline spoken word verses by DJ Bone. In fact, by the time you reach the closing operatic chimes of Vince Watson’s ‘Renaissance’, you’re left feeling wholly unnerved and unsure where the experience was a good one or not. But for serving up such a mind-bending head-fuck of an album we can only give the man credit.