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2LP
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SCAPE 028LP
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CD
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SCAPE 028CD
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Feelin' Dank is the second Bus album on Scape. Berliners Tom Thiel and Daniel Meteo aka Bus have created a truly relaxed record that mops up and redispenses the fun and vastness around them. As on previous Bus excursions, dub, hiphop and electronic elements provide the imaginary, triangulated demarcation lines for an expansive freestyle adventure playground that might even spawn the odd house track. The overall mood of Feelin' Dank is that carefree abandon has returned to dancefloors across the globe and left its mark on impassioned DJ and club-goer Meteo. On their latest outing, Bus conjure up transgressive paradises, while gentler elements have snuck into the Bus mix -- "soul" and "party vibe," they call it. On "Rose Specs," they crank up the might of the handclap, kickstarting a jam which, for a good two minutes, leaves raw, untweaked keyboard and guitar tracks to their own devices. Glasgow MC Soom-T also adds her boyish and soulful rap recitative to this track, as well as to the instrumentals of "Diamond In The Rough" and "The Answer." Soom-T, who already graced the first Bus album Middle Of The Road (SCAPE 019CD/LP), is part of the Glasgow crew Monkeytribe. On Feelin' Dank Bus chose to treat her voice just like the live instruments -- instead of demanding 100% mathematical accuracy they preferred to leave passages with feeling in place. They took a similar approach with Soom-T's colleague MC Rhino and Gonzales-collaborator Paul PM (whose vocals can be heard on "Twistin" and "Perdu"), while the final offbeat house of "My Night" features a session with Ras T-Weed of the Birmingham-based Overproof Soundsystem.
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12"
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SCAPE 024EP
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"This year, Bus have become a convertible. On their new Diamond EP everything is pervaded by a new, dynamic, open feel -- just like the sensation of loving your favorite club with renewed vigour after an elongated redecoration break. Maybe, just maybe this new direction has something to do with Daniel Meteo and Tom Thiel's new studio, finally allowing them to crank up all those tunes beyond sedentary, neighbor-friendly levels. And 'Diamond in the Rough' (its vocal version again graced by Scottish MC Soom-T) is one of those minimal, exuberant pieces of flickering dub better played loud. But while its funky claps and tiny melodies might point it towards the nearest the disco, it is more likely follow the signs to the nearest open air, pursuing that fluffy cloud high up in the sky shaped like an airy and eerie phantom Bus. 'Don't Change It' brims with self-confident chuckles and clucking cadences, always finishing in harmony -- and again features MC Soom-T who, unlike her insistent performances on the album Middle of the Road, adds a relaxing, yet forceful rap to this track. And finally, 'Slow' deigns to rumble out of the experimental corner with affirmative leisureliness to indulge in some slightly bonkers jangly vibraphone sounds."
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12"
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SCAPE 018EP
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"When, in 'Keep Life Right', she raps about disappointed love, loss of trust and realizing that the only person she can truly rely on is herself, she conveys the perspective of a woman whose serenity and wisdom is far more real than stereotypical role models in- and outside of the genre would like to make us believe. Soom-T's presence is strong throughout. Her presence remains noticeable even during the strictly instrumental tracks, as if listening in to ready herself for the next song. Perhaps bus play a version of dub that illuminates the other side of the coin -- definitely her agenda, too."
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2LP
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SCAPE 019LP
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CD
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SCAPE 019CD
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"Whoever considers dub an invitation to either armchair or dancefloor will enter shaky ground with Middle of the Road, the new album by Berlin duo Bus. Here, in the middle lane, giving way on the left, overtaking on the right, rules are disregarded and accidents only a microsleep away. In the realm of Scape's characteristic tilde the coordinates of relational localization fail in the same way as Daniel Meteo and Tom Thiel disobey any directional marching orders. Instead they have chosen to cruise the Bermuda triangle of dub, minimal electronica and hiphop in a veritable craft, bursting the questionable airbag of attitude, ego and representation with their first stumbling beat. Bus do not stop at unmasking genre-typical poses, but move one step further. They collect all the tiny inconsistencies that unveil the desolate yet strong core of their own fragility, sometimes through a slightly wobbly beat, sometimes via brutally honest lyrics -- and always head for the limits. But don't worry -- the view remains enchanting, perhaps because it is so familiar. And the Bus dub, a warm engine, leads a likeable life of its own -- with small hiccups and endearing quirks. Spurred by this drive, armchair and dancefloor are soon forgotten -- and we step into the middle of the road, come what may. In their efforts to combine dub, minimal electronica and hiphop in one riff they have managed to win over strong vocal support from Glaswegian underground shooting star MC Soom-T -- the only woman to reach the finals of the recent 8 Mile MC Championships 2003. Soom-T employs a wrongly forgotten recitative style, voice full of sharp, credible femininity and demanding involvement far from the prevalent lady, bitch or girl patterns."
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