Compilations are like movies. Most are the musical equivalent of blockbusters, serving up songs people already know; others are like arthouse films, endeavouring to educate their listeners. There are, of course, exceptions that do both — and that’s what Karen P tries to accomplish with …broadcasting. On this album, the former colleague of DJ Gilles Peterson includes the likes of Quite Sane, probably the best band you’ve never heard of. This overlooked outfit contributes Short Stories, a tune of such harmonic complexity, scholars will be analysing it for decades. It’s the kind of brilliant but obscure song that typifies an album that revels in its eclecticism. Karen P thinks nothing of mixing Rene Cosy’s funky crowd-pleaser Scrabble with retro orchestral arrangements by Jimi Tenor. There are also star turns by neo-soulsters Owusu And Hannibal (Blue Jay) and WON (Robot), not to mention scene-stealing P-funk by Tettory Bad (Unite (One)) and Skymark (Space & Time). If …broadcasting were a movie, it’d be that rare breed: a film that entertains and enlightens.
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