Search - Breakbeat Era :: Ultra-Obscene

Soundtrack for a Femme Fatale

Math 27 | baltimore | 03/01/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm surprised I had not heard of this album before, being a fan of Roni Size and most of the well known Bristol UK musicians. I was reading a critic's review of Roni's new 'Return to V' CD on another website and it mention this side project, Breakbeat Era as being arguably the best CD to feature Drum & Bass plus female vocals, even better than LAMB.



So I thought, no way, who can be better than LAMB, I mean who can top the drum assult on 'Cotton Wool'. So I decided to check this out. While there is no 'Cotton Wool' in Ultra -Obscene, and Lamb's Louise Rhondes' voice is far more lovely than Leonie Laws', I still enjoy listening and moving to this CD. What Breakbeat Era has over Lamb is character and attitude.



Programming by Roni Size and DJ Die is tight, with mysterious jazz basslines and jungle beats on all tracks, changing momentum and effects at the right moments. Leonie Laws comes across like a Femme Fatale, ready to kick butt and take on the world. She does not scream and nash her teeth, but states with conviction in 'Anti-Everything' that she was "..Raised a double agent" and "I'm ah walking Animal Machine and you ain't safe with Me" in 'Animal Machine'.

Her delivery reminds me of the commanding voice of Toni Halliday, the singer for Curve.



Spinning this CD is like watching an episode of Alias, or watching Brain De Palmer's 'Femme Fatale' or La Femme Nikita.



If you want attitude with your drum n' bass (or drum n bass with your attitude) then check out Breakbeat Era: Ultra -Obscene, which does not let up, straight up DnB, unlike Lamb who mellows occasionally. Though I still have a soft spot for LAMB, which I think is better that Breakbeat Era over all, because Louise is an awesome singer.



Breakbeat Era is a more exciting ride.





"

Ultra Obscene

10ma | Terre Haute, IN USA | 07/12/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Breakbeat Era consists of Leonie Laws, DJ Die, and Roni Size. The CD mixes surprisingly detailed drum n bass beats with female vocals. The tracks are as good as Goldies, the fact that they have a female singer complimenting the beats makes it more open to a wider range of audiences. Instead of pure drum n' bass CDs, it doesn't get tedious once it hits the halfway mark. All three of the musicians compliment each other immaculately. DJ Die is typically an okay musician on his own, so is Roni, but when all three colab, all of their individual styles are audible in the conglomerate of cadance, and they all mesh so well.
The only, and I mean *only*, problem I have with the CD is something that cant really be helped - Leonie's voice. She has a really attractive and ear-catching voice, really. But after hearing the voice for tracks on end, it can become a little annoying. It has the spark of billy corrigan's but gets somewhat distracting close to the later portion of the LP. This really deserves 4.5/5 just because it's such a minor infraction, but since it's something so negligible, the decimal should just be rounded up. It's one of the better d n b CDs and groups I've heard in a while."

Drum'n'Bass mates with Acid Jazz

Devylyst | Atlanta, Ga | 08/13/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A great cd for fans who love strong deep vocals mix with down tempo drum'n' bass, with a jazz twist. Lenny Laws, Roni Size, and Dj Die are the trio behind this album. If you like Tricky and Portishead, then pick this cd up."