Swayzak - 'Route De La Slack: Remixes & Rarities' (K7) Released 20/03/06

Having bagged some four albums plus countless singles and remixes, K7's leading lights 'Swayzak' bring things to date with this compilation of some of their finest mixes on disc one that move and groove, and disc two with rarities and previously unreleased tracks that wallow in the mire.

With a distinctive minimal-house parred-back sound that trades on simplicity - the Will Saul track featuring Ursula Rucker 'Tic Toc' shows the studio wizardry at work - with dubbed, spliced and warbling electronica, a warmth less at work on Slam's 'Human' - where binary connotations yes/no, signal/no signal - the soul that electronica can lack being shown on this leftfield number - like being trapped in a calculator ruminating mathematics. Fortunately there's a cracking Senor Coconut track 'Smoke On The Water' with a firm double bass loop, brassy samples and percussion to whoop a wail - like a Latinesque soundtrack of an assassin on the prowl.

Swayzak vs. Theorum is just one of the highlights - with lifted beats to get the party swinging - it has more of the 4x4 signatures, yet has a beautiful glacial quality that's so clean it cuts - it could have worked on the 'Bladerunner' soundtrack. 'Changes' by Tahiti 80  is the first song proper to appear and has the Tiga retro-feel with a twist. A reworking of Bergheim 34 yields a grungier take on 'Random Access Memory' that comes across like a mix of Stereolab and Joy Division by way of Vienna's finest producers, succinctly followed by 'Experimental Child' by old Peel fave Mighty Math - the Different Drummer stablemate providing a minimalist palate for the tinkering, with pinball ricocheting doodles, warm bass and spartan beats, an artist that demands further listening.

The rareties are something of a letdown, and didn't show the best of Swayzak's potential. There's too much inconsequential programming, that lets up on a couple of numbers - notably 'If I Didn't Care' finishing with a haunting almost Victorian vocal sample, and 'Grace's State' with tip-top programming, zip and panache, pitched vocal samples adding grist. For disc one - this is a disc that shows the talent at work in K7's studios, and the talent and respect Swayzak's James Taylor and David "Brun" Brown garner in the production world.