Given how prolific Nitin Sawhney is as a musician, it’s surprising his work hasn’t been treated until now. All Mixed Up isn’t truly a remix album, but is really a reworking of Nitin’s music by some of the biggest names on the UK music scene, including Bugz in the Attic, MJ Cole, Atjazz and Quantic among others.
The album kicks off with Freeform Five’s remix of “Homelands” which is presented here in its entirety for the first time. In this 11-minute plus track you’re bound to find a part that you like as it moves between Latin and jazz influences. The album’s other long track is Joe Clussell’s mix of “Moonrise” which closes the album. With its cha-cha beat, Indian sitars and French vocals by Cheb Mami, this is definitely a stand-out track on the compilation, albeit a little on the lengthy side.
Although all of the tracks provide a vastly different experience from the originals, they also – from Quantic’s beat driven mix of “Falling” to Gen-E and Visionary Underground’s clubby mix of “Lately” – keep the spirit of Nitin’s unique brand of music alive. Two different mixes of “Sunset” – arranged back-to-back on the album – demonstrate admirably how one piece can take two very different turns in the hands of talented musicians and turn out new and fresh. The MJ Cole mix is more garage and heavy on vocals while the London Elecktricity Mix focuses on the music with drum and bass emphases. The most inspired – but ultimately not successful – remix is the Bugz in the Attic version of “Rainfall” which features Rodney P’s rapping on top of the original vocals by Taio.
The album also includes a bonus CD about 24 mins long. Nitin mixes tracks from the remix CD adding Ojos de Bruja’s Acquired Dreams not found on the remix CD into a continuous aural feast. This is a bonus CD worth listening to.
My one major complaint with the album was that there weren’t any older Nitin tracks featured on it. I am not complaining about the presence of the Human and Prophesy tracks, but I would have liked tracks from his other albums to be featured on this compilation of remixes as well. My guess is that licensing or a business agreement could not be worked out with Outcaste Records, which is a shame.
If you’re looking for an album of new Nitin work, you’ll be disappointed with this one. If you know any of the other names featured on All Mixed Up, however, or would like to hear a different version of some of Nitin’s tracks, this album is for you.
My Picks:
- Falling (Quantic Mix)
- Immigrant (KV5 mix)
- Sunset (MJ Cole mix)
- Moonrise (Joe Clausell Mix)