Basement Jaxx: Kish Kash : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Around the world of sound with top U.K. DJ duo the energy never sags and ideas never flag on the third album from Basement Jaxx, a duo that cribs from R&B, punk, house, Asian, Latin and Middle Eastern music without the self-consciousness that usually accompanies such a broad palette. "Right Here's the Spot" sounds like Kraftwerk meeting Prince in some old-school underground house club; Meshell Ndegeocello drops in some sultry vocals; the title song, meanwhile, is all rhythmic punk thrash, featuring Eighties New Wave treasure Siouxsie Sioux. But on a CD filled with guest artists, the highlight is the opening track, "Good Luck": It features Lisa Kekaula, of L.A. cult faves the BellRays; she attacks the lyrics with ferocity against a static-drenched sound collage of hand claps, strings, pounding beats, computer effects and the proverbial kitchen sink. The track shimmies like a Sixties R&B gem but blasts with the fury of rock & roll. Forget the gleaming studio trickery that sits atop the charts -- this is real soul music.

ERNEST HARDY
(RS 935, November 13, 2003)