KASSA OVERALL Vinilo y CD

Review: Warp continue to expand their horizons (as they always have done), enlisting the the help of musician, MC, singer, producer and drummer Kassa Overall. Kassa is an innovator in the world of leftfield jazz and rap, blending the styles to dazzling extents and working with the likes of Vijay Iyer, Theo Croker, Geri Allen and Yoko Ono in the process. Animals is his third album, exploring questions ranging from humanity to race to freedom - the sound is slinky and smooth, with Kassa's vocal lines ranging from the autotuned to the unaffected. His backings, meanwhile, are both rhythmically free to constrained, with a looseness that recalls a more upbeat Lonnie Holley. Just one glance at its featuring artists, too, should be enough to tell you of the musical ecosystem Kassa emerges from - the LP contains cameos from a rather endless rank: Danny Brown, Wiki, Nick Hakim, Laura Mvula, Francis and the Lights, Lil B and Shabazz Palaces (just in case you were wondering about Kassa's credibility).

Review: Brownswood present another crucial talent meshing jazz with neo-soul, hip-hop, beats and well just about everything on the path to originality. Kassa Overall doesn't really sound like anyone else - he's got his own distinctive touch that gets loose and limber with the samples and instrumentation, but holds everything together with a smoky haze that makes it so easy to sink back into. The players on the album spill out with an effortless flow, while Overall cuts a laid back yet vulnerable figure on the mic. It's highly personal and built with wings to soar, like peering through the window of a bedroom studio and catching the artist levitating mid-flow. Watch this talent, he's set to take off.