In 1990, having blasted a piratical path with the pioneering mash-ups on their Ahead Of Our Time label, while making high-profile moves such as introducing Lisa Stansfield into the world, Coldcut’s Matt Black and Jon Moore threw their obsession with musical cross-pollination and going against the grain into starting a label they decided to call, with suitably stealthy imagery, Ninja Tune. Since then the label has unleashed a barrage of genre-defining assaults that have launched stars and nudged audacious sound clashes into the too-often-formularised field of electronic music. The Ninja Cuts series is more than mere retrospective compilation, mixing highlights from Ninja Tune, Big Dada and Counter with unreleased and upcoming material.
This fifth volume is breathtaking in its scope, ranging from familiar names such as Roots Manuva, DJ Shadow, Cinematic Orchestra, Mr Scruff and The Herbaliser. Baltimore’s Death Set charge through the electro-punk gallop of Around The World, while rarities include Mike Ladd’s Blah Blah from 1998. Coldcut are represented, including Walk A Mile In My Shoes, their haunted collaboration with the legendary Robert Owens, house music’s greatest soul singer. There are 50 tracks over three CDs, every one a reason to be cheerful with a tale to tell.
