Various Artists ’10 Years of Phonica Records’

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Title: 10 Years of Phonica Records
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Spanning a generous three discs, comprising 33 tracks, this celebratory release aimed at making it clear London’s Phonica has been purveying fine beats for a decade, obviously wants to land with some impact. Along with a seemingly obligatory CD or vinyl of in-house classics, we also have a pair boasting nothing but previously unreleased material, making for both the biggest selling points and two statements of status. Friends in high places indeed.

And why should those in charge not trumpet the audio empire they have built? From the label and its imprints’ oft-curveball throwing output to the fact Phonica still keeps a brick and mortar business in a landscape dominated by online stores, there’s plenty to be proud of. And, although it doesn’t quite hit the legendary benchmark, this expansive compilation is definitely another jewel in that crown. Despite being designed for the turntable, CDJ or digital playing core customer base there’s enough differentiation between tracks to ensure it does stand up under other types of listening scrutiny, which was an obvious modus for the album, given Phonica sells a plethora of musical styles from a wide variety of imprints, but nonetheless is difficult to pull off when it comes to the nitty-gritty of track selection- as so many run of the mill and dull as ditchwater compilations so often prove.

With a multitude of tunes worth noting using the remain space here to make direct references to individual items seems folly, as it’s unlikely to give an accurate impression of the overall offering. Loosely falling under a very modern house banner, anyone who appreciates quite how diverse such a title is should understand what this means for a collection like this. Point proven, like we said there’s no need to highlight specifics, or indeed attempt to convince anyone the release in question is worth buying. After all, if you’re a fan of Raudive, Romen Flugel, Mr. G, I:Cube, Henrik Schwarz, Legowelt, Juju & Jordash, Joe Claussell or Midland then chances are this will already be on the shopping list.


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