Well, it must be at least a couple of months since my last serious Plasticman hero-worship post, and a recent purchase gives me all the excuse I need for another one...
Massive props to Kate in Manchester for selling me her spare copy of Plasticman's hard-to-find "The Lift" EP at original cost price with free delivery! I've been busily tracking down all Plastic's slim back-catalogue over the past few months and this one, released on Road last year, had been proving particularly hard to locate. I 'acquired' MP3 versions ages ago, but was still mad-keen to own an original, especially as the rip of "Printloop" (my fave track on the EP) was marred by some serious needle-jumping. Along with the "Cha" EP, this must be one of the definitive Plasticman releases. All three tracks are top quality, featuring the sort of urgent, innovative beats, undulating square-bass dynamics and total economy that I revere in his best work. The tracks sound sparse yet full - every note, every drum hit, precisely sculpted for maximum impact and efficiency - pure, undiluted machine music at it's best. Sometimes I think I've been waiting for Plasticman all my life. I love the design of those Road twelves too, with all the road-sign aesthetics and the street map on the a-side label. It shows the Thornton Heath area...my London geography isn't too hot, but I know it's somewhere in the Croydon district, and I believe it's the area in which Plasticman resides- I wonder if there's some particular significance to any of the streets shown?
While I'm at it, I might at well show-off some of my other recent acquisitions. Scored the "Gotcha/The Rush" twelve off e-bay a while back, which is proof of my 'completist' collector mentality, as both tracks are also easily available on an A.R.M.Y. re-issue with additional remixes. But I just couldn't resist blowing a fiver on this edition released on the More2dafloor label in 2004. This is Plastic in full-on 4/4 mode, riding that kick-drum pulse like a muthafucka and slaying my soundsystem with some fruity bassline warblers and foreboding string-pads. It's an emotional thing - you either feel it or you don't, and I'm feeling this shit big time.
Next up is "Springroller/Anger", released on Fatale Attraction. This is another e-bay win, which came to my attention after the Plasticman himself linked to it at the Terrorhythm board (he loves watching his own tunes selling on e-bay!), although I should also give thanks to Johnny Prancehall for the subsequent alert too - it's good to know that my friends are looking out for my best interests! More quality beats here, with "Anger" boasting a spiky, unclassifiable melodic texture and some nasty plug-in filtery breakdowns. I just can't get enough...
Bringing things back up-to-date, I must mention this limited test-pressing of "Zulu Remix/Section 7" on the Southside Dubstars label. It's available at Blackmarket , Juno and Warpmart and you should grab one whilst they're hot. I'm particularly excited by "Section 7" with it's nagging one-note bassline and ultra-grimey orchestral stabs. There's a sick l'il dubplate I recorded from Q-Grittie's Rinse FM slot last Friday, featuring some speculative chord sequences that make me suspect he's been learning a few compositional tricks on that music production college course he's been attending. Wicked tune, but I just hope he doesn't let his new-found technical knowledge ultimately steer him towards a slicker, more professional sound. I'm a bit worried that, if he actually knows what he's doing, he'll lose his edge. Just keep those Fruity Loops raw and gutter, Plasticman. I'm depending on you...Oh, and if anyone's got a spare copy of the original "Venom/Shockwave" EP...?
PLASTIC ON ROAD (DIGITAL VERSION)
The Terrorhythm catalogue is now available to download at Bleep. I find it quite interesting that, at least in this particular area of the underground, despite the gradual acceptance of legal digital downloads, no one seems interested in releasing EPs on CD anymore. The format seems to have been completely bypassed, even though there must be plenty of DJs working with CD turntables these days, plus compact discs must be a lot cheaper to manufacture than vinyl. You might find DJs playing exclusive beats off cd-r (only when they haven't had a chance to cut a proper 10" dub) but other than that...? Even the more high-profile labels like Planet Mu only release albums on CD nowadays. In the world of Dance Muzik, it would appear that the CD is rapidly becoming obsolete, and the format-battles of the future will be between the vinyl purists and the digital downloaders. I also find my own position rather curious. For years I'd settled into an album-orientated CD lifestyle, then last year I became a full-on download evangelist, yet currently I'm a born-again vinyl fetishist, only really using the download route for sharing and collecting mixes. And why place so much importance on formats anyway? Surely it's only the music that counts? Maybe I should just get out more...
