re: Jimpster, "messages from the hub":
funny, i hadn't expected to like this; i had thought of jimpster as being
lumped in with weirdstep drill'n'bass. not here, though. the sleeve
namechecks everyone from juan atkins, roy ayers, black dog, chick corea, j.
de johnette, dj shadow, dot, jan hammer (!), jaco pastorius, lee perry,
wagon christ, joe zawinul... and, believe it or not, i'd say that all those
references are there (ok, i don't know about j. de johnette). and while the
list might be a little too safe, for all its eclecticism, it's a damn nice
record. really smooth, soulful downtempo with drum'n'bass leanings. the
samples are rich, the percussion (mostly sampled-from-live, it seems) is
deep and solid, and there's an interestingly japanese quality to much of the
sound (that strange digital palette i hear in ken ishii, reflection, & a
slew others) that i wouldn't expect from something like this. this should
appeal to fans of Kruder & Dorfmeister, Wagon Christ's "Throbbing Pouch,"
etc.
phil