Various Artists – Warp10+2 Classics 89-92 [1999; Matador, Play It Again Sam, Source, Virgin France S.A., Warp Records]

Collecting several of the singles from the first few years of Warp Records’ catalog, and presenting them in order of their positions in the label’s catalog numbers (not always matching up directly with actual release), this decade-anniversary compilation gives a quick run
(by omitting most of the remixes)

through those recordings and the way they defined Warp’s foundational style. In keeping with the label’s need to clearly demonstrate their approach, the bulk of the songs feature very clean production on their beats and synth-tones, along with fairly simple structuring of their house/techno patterns, with the most ‘cluttered’-sounding likely being the hip-hop-glazed “Hey! Hey! Can U Relate?” by DJ Mink.

Most of the other songs omit vocals entirely, which ends up being one of the main strains linking artists which stuck with the label as long-term attachments (e.g., Nightmares On Wax and LFO), those which had faded away or disbanded even before this compilation’s release (Sweet Exorcist), ones which eventually bounced to other labels (Forgemasters, Coco Steel & Lovebomb), and the groups which put just one or two singles to their name before disappearing (The Step, Tuff Little Unit).

The electronic nature of the music is another big link, of course, as are the extensive use of loops, the very nature of the hardware used at the time, and an undercurrent of funk, but picking out the particulars of style which separate the songs’ similarities is one of the collection’s more entertaining points of usage. Primarily a historical document, it also shows that the singles used to build Warp’s reputation had better-than-decent technique backing them up, even if the same can’t be said of the B-sides.

Various Artists – Sampler 06: Quality Electronic Music [2006; Ai Records]

Freeform electronica fills this compilation, bringing together previously issued tracks with exclusive ones, and joining members of the Ai Records stable with artists who never released on it outside of this sampler. IDM, chillout, downbeat, house, dub, and more are stirred together within and across the tracks, and though none of the contributors are particularly well-known (Plant43 and Datassette being the biggest names of the lot), they all serve up their piece with high style, careful production, and a striking sense of character.

Slowed beats, squelched synths, delicate undertextures, and drifting light drones are regular components of the songs, with multiple rhythmic layerings offered up in forms allowing for enjoyment of their entanglement or individual merits. Some recurrent qualities across the eight tracks isn’t enough to drag it down by a significant extent, and the continuity over their course has enough twists thrown in to keep things interesting. A little uneven, but still a strong showing from everyone involved.

Various Artists – Komotion International, Vol. 2 [1991; Spirit Music Industries]

Pulling together just over a dozen solo and group acts signed to various record labels (plus a couple of bands which appeared only on releases in this compilation series), this album seems to have been put together without much shaping of its intent beyond offering up some edge-of-counter-culture music of its time. Touching on early-’90s alt rock, rockabilly, conscious rap, heavy electro, spoken word, industrial, and more, the collection drifts through assorted moods of anxiety and detachment, strident and calm presentations, political and personal perspectives, and so on. Aside from the flavoring of its point in time and the general alternative shading, the main thing linking the songs is that they’re all performed with quite a bit of style and a strong sense of character. Outside of that, it’s an unpredictable grab-bag, but there’s still fun to be had with it.

Various Artists – 古式 Records Compilations – Hangin’ With Our Waifus [2012; 古式 Records]

Presenting its songs in alphabetical order of their creators, this compilation throws together noise, breakcore, illbient, grind, and more, with little linking the tracks beyond a freeness of compositional style and an almost confrontational counter-cultural attitude. Ranging from clear echoing tones to thick-clustered lo-fi buzz bursts, the compilation appears to have given its contributors entirely free rein on their direction, though that’s likely for the best. There also seems to be little more to the title than the release being issued on Valentine’s Day, with the relatively few anime samples for the genre further cutting off any sense of the claimed “2D Goddess” dedication. Weird for the sake of weirdness, but there are some good tracks lurking in its recesses.

Various Artists – Camping [2005; BPitch Control]

Twenty tracks of off-beat techno pack this label sampler, with chill vocals, dribbled beats, stiff clicks, and melting synths drifting together. Bits of chipbreak, acid house, electro, and other flavors bubble up from the dozen or so contributing acts, and while the tempos and action occasionally become frenzied, the music rarely loses its sense of controlled cool. That also helps bind the diverse tracks together across their range of fluctuations and stutters, building a sense of the label’s style on the whole (extensive sampling of Kid Rock associate Joe C. in Housemeister’s “Do You Wanna Funk” aside).

One of the strongest points in the compilation’s favor, though, is the openness the musicians show to bringing in single points of divergence to the rest of the song’s shaping, like the injection of Mediterranean strings into electro, or post-punk bass lick loops combed into house rhythms. Though few of the featured artists have stuck with the label to the current day (with owner Ellen Allien’s plentiful output being the prime exception), the general attitude of the music gives a clear sense of how BPitch Control presented themselves at the time, even with the quick turn-about offered by the musical switch-ups.

Various Artists – Basic Replay [2007; Basic Replay]

With this compilation, the Basic Replay record label provides a thorough overview of the reggae tunes they’d reissued, mingling relatively big names like Chuck Turner and White Mice with lesser-knowns and under-repped greats. Dabs of dub and dancehall rhythms drift up and pass on through the sixteen tracks, keeping up an easy flow of style through the variety of acts and attitudes. With virtually all of the inclusions culled from the late ‘80s, there is some similarity of production quality from track to track, but they all come through with clear and full-bodied tones thanks to some careful remastering. A very solid collection, making it even more of a shame that the label’s reissue efforts ended the same year as its release.

Various Artists – Adult Swim Singles Program 2012 [2012; [adult swim]]

This thirteen-track compilation brings together popular counter-culture acts of the time, including Com Truise, Wavves, Death Grips, and Flying Lotus, among others, for a collection which eagerly swerves through a broad range of styles and dispositions. Electronic, garage rock, metal, dreampop, and more are served up without much rhyme or reason to the track ordering, and while the picks are almost unanimously enjoyable, or at least stylish, the jumbling doesn’t do the experience any favors beyond underlining the already-evident variety. As a result, while it does offer an informative cross-cut of the year’s top alternative acts (as estimated by the cable cartoon channel), that’s about all it does.

Various Artists – The Best of Disney, Volume Two [1978; Disneyland]

In this second and final installment of the Best of Disney compilation series, the selections come from live-action and animated films (plus one track, “Disco Mouse”, from the New Mickey Mouse Club TV series), with little flow or linkage between the picked tracks. The audio quality is better than that of the first in the series, though there’s still a bit of fuzziness at times, and for the most part, the performances come off quite well. Mary Poppins and Pinocchio each get two inclusions, and aside from So Dear to My Heart, the rest of the sources are well-exposed entries in Disney’s catalog. A decent compilation, but the seemingly careless grab-bag nature stains it with a sense of pointlessness.