Quality Relaxation

A new label launching a chillout compilation is going to be one of those sink-or-swim things: the subgenre is swamped by identikit releases with identikit artists proffering identikit sounds. Quality Relaxation, however, does exactly what it says on the tin – a very tight and pleasing compilation featuring some new and unexpected names alongside more established artists. Entheogenic’s Walk On Air opens the album up in a style that’s more groovy than I’d expect from those guys, with an almost mello-drum-n-bass vibe going through it; Warm pads and ticklish runs remind you who’s behind it. Elysuim’s Fairytale is a lovely piece of work, takes things inwards and makes you want to turn the bass up. I don’t recall hearing anything from this guy in some time, but it’s nice to have the eardrums tickling again!! Shulman’s The Unexpected Visitor is a masterpiece, end of. It’s got sounds that make it smell a little like the classic “Tip Chill” sound, but with bags more emotion, flow and soul. Classy. Ishq’s En Soph is every bit as deep and beatless as you would expect from the master of extreme ambience, and I was surprised to hear Jaia following the rabbithole quite so deep with Missing – a right old shiatsu massage of a track that eases and soothes away at you. Cell’s Secret Wedding is nice enough, though I still can’t find whatever it is that everyone else seems to like about this guy. Certainly compared with the other tracks here it lacks depth: case in point, PhasePhour’s Unpronounced Numbers, which is an utterly joyous track. It flows wonderfully, there’s unbelievable expression in it, and the melodies just float around your head in a truly magnificent style. Utterly jawdropping. Elysium vs Space Cat’s Dub Connection is a nice little tune, the ‘proper’ dub touches make it stand out from the psy-chill crowd, and the melodies are easy and smooth on the brain… a sign that label boss and CD compiler, PKS, knows what he’s talking about when it comes to decent, succulent chillage. Altitudes’ Altitude 1 cascades and builds brilliantly, with awesomely emotive melodies and delicious acidlines all combining to create surely one of the finest chillout moments of this year. Finally a very surprising tune from Blue Planet Corp: Wild City is a cute little charmer, with smile-making vocodes over a chummy break-based backing. It sounds like it could fit well just as well on a café del mar set as on a summer festival set, and I reckon it’s just as good for either. All in all this is a very tight and together compilation, a rare thing in today’s overcrowded chillout market. Chill Tribe have simultaneously carved themselves a solidly individual niche, and set themselves up for tasty sounds in the months and years to come.