What makes
Combustication Remix such a fun program is the fact that
Medeski, Martin & Wood's sound is normally so organic -- comprised of
John Medeski on Hammond organ, upright bassist Chris Wood and drummer
Billy Martin, the trio has always cultivated a warm, funky sound that is far removed from the digital bleeps and synthetic grooves of electronic dance music. So bringing in four DJs, a rapper, and
Bill Laswell to work some remix voodoo on tracks from the latest
MM&W album was a move both counterintuitive and inspired. Illy B goes the techno route on his remix of "Hey-Hee-Hi-Ho";
Guru intones some somber ghetto consciousness over a hip-hopped-up arrangement of "Whatever Happened to Gus";
DJ Logic weaves an eerie, illbient groove out of "Start-Stop"; and
Dan the Automator gets similarly downtempo on his remix of "Nocturne," which actually incorporates a
Steel Pulse sample. But best of all is
Bill Laswell's ten-minute take on "Satan's Church of Hypnotized Logic," which retains much of the flavor of the original while muscling it up with heavier bass and Middle Eastern vocal samples. ~ Rick Anderson