Worship Recordings
Mixed By Rob Paine (Worship Recordings)

When seminal UK progressive house label Guerilla decided to call their label albums Dub House Disco in 1992, the title superbly summed up the styles the records contained. Picking up the baton five years later, Philadelphia producer Rob Paine also picked up on dub as a key factor for his own label Worship and this mix CD, his own label introduction, contains Worship۪s first ten offerings.

Featuring dubbed out club tunes from the likes of Rocket (aka San Fransciso۪s DJ Garth and Eric James) and Swedish tech-house man Hakan Libdo, and seamlessly mixed by Rob himself, the CD thumps along at a typically progressive pace, though importantly adds reggae style sounds and vocal snippets to create a far more interesting and listenable vibe.

Frequently reminiscent of Leftfield at their creative early 90s best (when the English duo shared offices with Guerilla) almost all the tracks here offer rhythm and stealthily acquired vocal hooks, and it۪s no surprise that the label۪s already found support from the likes of Joe Claussell, Ben Watt and Silicon Soul.

Distinctive, highly listenable and original without being too experimental, Worship Volume 1 is the sound of a team that knows how, why and where they۪re going. And it sounds like their journey has only just began.

Jonty Adderley