Fabric 50

Although he is arguably one of the architects of the dubstep sound, for his contribution to the Fabric label's DJ series Martijn Deijker decided to go back to his house and techno roots -- but slyly, in a way that actually seems to map out the course of his musical development over the years. Starting out with Hudson Mohawke's "Joy Fantastic" (a loose-limbed hip-hop number with an old-school funk groove and plenty of squidgy synth), he then shifts quickly into house mode with multi-layered Latin percussion by presenting Alec Wizz's "Drummin' (Louis Benedetti Drumminpella)"; within a few tracks, the four-on-the-floor house thump has slipped into a languid soca groove with Altered Native's "Rass Out." From here on out the beat gets more and more complex, the bass thickens, and you start hearing the techno roots of dubstep and techno-dub very clearly. Notice in particular the dubwise effects that leaven the (otherwise aptly titled) "Clock (Ben Klock's Timepiece)" by Deep Groove, and the way an expertly structured rhythm keeps the enervated vocals on Martyn's own "These Words [Roska's Speechless Mix]" from dragging the proceedings down. Martyn's "Friedrichstrasse" is jaunty and fun, and combined with his other original tracks raises the tantalizing possibility of a top-notch artist album someday. Until then, his treatments of other artists' work will probably continue to be plenty satisfying in their own right.