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Various Artists - Chris Coco & Rob Da Bank Present Blue Balearic (sanctuary)
What a combination these two make. Having recently unveiled 'Remasterpiece' - my album of the year to date - and played just about every summer festival you can shake a stick at, Chris Coco has somehow found time to compile a new Blue Room compilation. Similarly, you'd have thought Rob Da Bank has his hands full enough completing his Lazyboy album and organising parties all the way from Ibiza to the Isle of Wight, but there seems to be no stopping him on that front either. When there's an opportunity, these two grab it.They don't rest on their laurels, however. There's no trademark Blue Room sound, principally because both Coco and Da Bank seem to have a voracious appetite for fresh music as long it meets their broad Balearic criteria, making them champions both of old as well as new. So on here you'll find Jonathan Richman rubbing shoulders with Kings of Convenience, Althea & Donna with Butch Cassidy Sound System, Mikey Dread with Cornershop.
If that sounds all a bit 'back to mine', you're not wrong. Being largely unmixed, 'Blue Balearic' is much closer in spirit to a mashed-up session with your mates than elegant dinner party music - or let's just say if dinner's on the cards, you can expect the conversation to be pretty lively. I for one would be challenging the inclusion of Nouvelle Vague's 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' (I like it, but it's sacrilege, isn't it?) and Althea & Donna's 'Uptown Top Ranking' (somewhat overplayed this last year); you might be laughing about hearing old flame Roddy Frame set to a club beat (it kinda works, actually) or smiling at Cornershop's 'Topknot' (beautifully bonkers).
Either way, it's definitely not background listening. As per usual when he's behind the decks, Rob Da Bank creates the sonic equivalent to a big drunk grin - making Grand National's 'Drink To Moving On' a very appropriate inclusion. Chris Coco's selection, on the other hand, starts out with a much greater sense of composure and calm, but having dropped his own remix of Engineers, the party finds its second wind.
Certainly the prevailing spirit here is the spirit of anything goes. Both CDs are notable for the way they see-saw between electronica, Americana, pop and reggae, chucking heaps of new material into the mix: Headland, The Album Leaf, The Earlies, Dead Composers, Engineers, TV On The Radio, Piney Gir, Bongmaster Inc, Mylo, Banzai Republic, Lucky Jim - all of these are completely new to my collection. So whatever else happens in the Blue Room, you can be sure of one thing: you'll never be bored.
Freddie B
Blue Balaeric is out now on Sanctuary
Chris Coco & Rob Da Bank previous Blue Room CD reviewed (BBC)
Written: 6th Sep, 04
Read: 2253 times
