ZED BIAS Vinilo y CD

Review: Long time underground UK stalwart Zed Bias dropped this - one of his many seminal cuts - back in 1999. Now, the dark garage classic 'Neighbourhood' gets reissued alongside some remixes. In its original form, it has an alluring vocal charm with unsettling chords over a grinding bassline and sharp percussion. The El B remix brings fleshier low ends and more swagger and shuffle while the vocals remain in place to blow up your spot. To close out the EP, Dawn Raid remixes with a high-energy jungle sound full of old-school signifiers. A proper EP for proper dance floors.

Review: Zed Bias's superb recent single with Shumba Youth is a modern fusion of dancehall and ragga that is perfect for loud deployment on top sound systems. Here though it comes in four different versions, all of which tap into different aspects of the UK hardcore continuum. The 4x4 Garage mix is just that and perfect for grotty warehouses, the 4x4 VIP Refix has a more prominent baseline feel and the Jeftuz UKG remix is a broken beat killer with wub-wub goodness. Last of all is the restless and kinetic 2-step mix to close out a high grade 12".

Review: Zed Bias has been a bass, dub and garage king since forever, but his star shows no signs of diminishing any time soon. For this one he has worked with Shumba Youth on a new single that finds him dipping into a world of dancehall and ragga. 'London Town' is heavy, with real bass weight, churning drums and fizzing digital synths under the superb bars from Shumba who muses on the state of London right now. Next to that are slithering leads and sci-fi pads to make for a fine future vibe. The acappella is served up on the flip for DJs who want to play.