Badmarsh

Because of Badmarsh's Indian ethnicity and London upbringing, the obvious comparisons are to Talvin Singh or the Asian Dub Foundation, but this guy is much more specifically committed to hardcore jungle and drum'n'bass than either. That means he incorporates South Asian sonorities (raga-based melodies and ethnic percussion) into his grooves, but he doesn't waste much time noodling around and experimenting -- he gets immediately down to serious beatmongering. This is good, and Singh, for one, should take notice. Differences is a four-track EP (with two bonus tracks on the CD), and all are solid; some are excellent. Solidity of the rhythmic and textural varieties are what makes "Tribal Warfare" and "Differences" as good as they are (that, and a very tasty drum sound on the latter). On "Simply Rolling," it's his ingenious way of juxtaposing the dubwise vocal samples with his highly complex breakbeats. There are surprising Latin touches lurking behind the sitar on "Let It Roll." Here's hoping for a full-length from this talented youngster sometime soon. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide