Photek - Ni Ten Ichi Ryu [TeeBee Remix]

As established by Sir Issac Newton in his Principia Mathematica, clangy sword noises and samurai yelling instantly makes a good D&B track into an awesome one. Whilst Photek's original version is impressively atmospheric, Teebee's remix builds with a furious intensity that just makes you wanna run out and buy a katana and fight some crime.

Cyantific & Logistics - Brighter Day

FUCK YES.

The last time Cyantific and Logistics got together, they produced the brain-mangling Flashback , the stand out tracks on a whole album of stand-out tracks. Once again, Cyantific is really smashing things up, with Brighter Day due out on his own Cyantific label later this year, along with some proper jungle nonsense in the form of 88 MPH on the B side.

Keep plugged in to Cyantific's blog for news and gig updates, and be sure to grab the ridiculous Cyantific & Wilkinson remix of Kid Adrift's Oxytocin.
Proof that drum and bass ruins everything to perfection.

Etiquette Minefield: Choosing The Right Wine

Deciding on the right wine for the right situation can be a very daunting business. Walk in to any decent off-license or wine merchant and you're likely to be overwhelmed by the number and variety of wines on offer.

Most people who come to me for advice on wine are looking to pick something up for a small-scale social gathering, be it a dinner party, summer barbecue, key party or similar occasion. I am forever being asked, "What's a good wine for fish?" or, "How much should I spend on wine for a birthday present?" That's why I've put together this handy guide explaining the key points to consider when selecting wine, so that the next time you go out boozing, you can do so with confidence.

1. Price
There are essentially four layers of strata when it comes to wine pricing. Which price level you should choose will depend on a variety of factors:

£0.00 - £2.99 The most basic and horrible of plonk. Go for this if you hate everyone else at the party and want them to know it. Includes HappyShopper and Aldi own-brand wines, "homemade wine" and anything that says "Proudly Grown and Bottled in Great Britain" on the label.

£3.00 - £4.99 Once you get over the three pound mark, all wine basically begins to taste the same, but be careful with this stuff. Make sure you correctly judge the quality of the social affair you'll be attending. A £3.99 wine might be acceptable for a gathering of close friends during which you all get blitzed and play Wii Sports, but it is generally too acrid for a really posh dinner party with actual food.

£5.00 - £7.99 This brings us to the third category. Generally speaking, anywhere between a fiver and eight quid should net you a fairly decent wine, and you'll have paid out enough not to feel guilty about how much everyone else might have spent.

£8.00 - £230.00 Spend anything over £8.00 and you're essentially pissing money away, unless you're trying to impress the checkout lady. Also, although it is very unlikely, you run the risk that your host may know a thing or two about wine, recognize your generous purchase, and decide to "save it for another day" (i.e once everyone else has gone home). Acceptable perhaps, but only for those with more money than sense.

2. The Name/Label
Buying wine is very similar to another popular middle class past time; browsing Waterstones for rubbishy holiday paperbacks. People are pretty much always swayed by a nice cover, a wacky font and a catchy name. In my opinion, the label design is without a doubt the most important thing to consider when choosing your wine.

Check out these two examples:

Soaring Kite Viognier Riesling 2007
Wow! Soaring Kite? Doesn't that name paint a beautiful mental image of a majestic kite fluttering on the breeze? Look at that lovely picture on the bottle! If you bring this wine to a party, people will understand that you're artistic, intelligent, poetic and clearly know a lot about wine.

Joseph Drouhin Moulin-à-Vent 2008
I don't even know where to begin with this. What the hell is a Moulin-à-Vent? I think it translates as "windy sheep" or something but I could be wrong. And who is Joseph Drouhin? I have never heard of him, and neither will anyone else at the party. The bottle is boring, with no pretty pictures, and the name is bafflingly unpronounceable. Remember, choosing the right wine is all about impressing people with how smart you are. This stuff won't impress anyone.

As a general rule, you're better off going for a New World wine, because they have better names and prettier labels.

There are of course exceptions to this rule. For example, anything French with the word "Château" in the name and a picture of a tower on the label is usually a good call. Wack a bottle of this stuff on the table, and you and the rest of the guests will be transported back to Normandy of 1944, having just looted a German command post before heading back out into the bocage.


See what I mean?

Wines to Avoid
Remember, the most important thing about choosing wine is showing off how smart you are to people you secretly hate. No one is going to be impressed if you turn up with a wine they recognize from Sainsburys or because it is a proud sponsor of Come Dine With Me.

Therefore, make sure you give the following a wide berth:

Jacob's Creek
JP Chenet
Blossom Hill
Black Tower
Echo Falls
Casillero del Diablo
Wolf Blass
MD 20/20


Remember to ask yourself, what does your choice of wine say about you? This stuff says, 'I sit at home all day in my pants watching repeats of Friends on E4+1". Not very sophisticated, I think you'll agree.

Red or White?
There's an old wives' tale that suggests certain types of wine accompany certain foods better than others. I can tell you for a fact, this is a load of old rubbish. It might be true if you're actually eating decent food, but nine times out of ten, the wine won't make any difference. Red or white, meat or fish, the reason people drink wine is because of its alcohol content, not because they enjoy the subtle aroma of fruity tannins combining with chestnut and daffodil on the nose.

Dessert Wines
If you really want show people how sophisticated you are, I'd definitely recommend going for a dessert wine. It doesn't matter what as they're pretty much all horribly sweet to the point of being undrinkable and your bottle will most likely sit on the table unopened for the entire meal. If someone does accidentally open the dessert wine, make sure you pretend to enjoy drinking the stuff. The other diners will be disgusted by it, but impressed by your apparently refined palette.

Just look at that stuff. Yech!

If you stick to the above points, people will be impressed by your knowledge and ability with selecting wine. Everyone will think that you're much smarter than you really are and fame and fortune will almost certainly come your way. You might even end up writing for the Sunday Times Food and Drink supplement or something.

However, it might be handy to remember a few choice phrases to throw into conversation, just to remind people how much you know about wine. Here's a selection you can have for free:

"Of course there hasn't been a decent Malbec out of Argentina since 2006."

"Say what you like about it, but at the end of the day, Rioja is Rioja."

"I tend to find Pinot Noir a little too resilient for my liking."

"The thing with the Aussies is, it's not what they put into their wine, but what they take out."

If you have any questions about wine or wine tasting, hit me up on the email or Facebook and I'll try and answer as best I can.

Bon Appetit!

Logistics Live on 1Xtra 24/09/2009

Big mix from Logistics from last September.

01. SPY – Slum Dub (dub)
02. Fresh – Heavyweight (DSB)
03. Marky & SPY – Riff Raff (dub)
04. Logistics – Murderation (Hospital)
05. SPY – Dark Corners (Liquid V)
06. Fierce & Break – Hooligan (Quarantine)
07. Break – Bassface (dub)
08. SPY – A Trip (dub)
09. SKC – Off Guard VIP (Commercial Suicide)
10. Break – In Limbo (Quarantine)
11. Mindscape – Unknown (dub)
12. Subfocus – Follow The Light (Ram)
13. Metrik – Anthem 09 (Viper)
14. Logistics – Together (Hospital)
15. Logistics – Toytown (Hospital)
16. Sigma – Point It Back (dub)
17. Logistics – Cosmonaut (Hospital)
18. Logistics – Eastern Promise (Hospital)
19. Metrik – Forward Approaches (Viper)
20. Trei & State of Mind – Thunder Biscuit (Samurai)

Download here!

S.P.Y - By Your Side

Soaring, emotional stuff from S.P.Y. Apparently it's coming out on Spearhead or something once the samples are cleared.

Mortem - Whispers

Right, in order to give this stupid website a bit more structure, I'm gonna try and stick up at least one track that I'm currently enjoying on Monday, a mix later in the week, and then any other inane jabbering as and when I find the time.

I probably won't be able to stick to this new timetable though. I'm rubbish at that sort of thing.




Sinister glitchy Polish D&B from Mortem. Awesome use of the whispery samples makes it sound like something out of Lost, but backed up with a heavy Lynx-esque beat.

Check Mortem's MySpace for similar darkness.

The Hit

I sat in driver's seat, and thumbed through the folder Aleksander had given me. It felt like the thousandth time I'd seen this stuff. Photos, home and work addresses, phone numbers, vehicle plates, even a schedule of the target's daily routine. The Russians had really done their homework on this one. Everything that was needed to make the hit was in there. They just needed a trigger man. Someone deniable in case of blowback. A synapse, committing their impulse into one swift, bloody action. Somehow, this had come to be me. If I screwed this one up, I knew I'd be on my own, but that was always the way with this job; Rely on no one but yourself. Trust only your own instincts.

My mind raced back to the conversation I'd had with Aleksander two weeks prior. We'd sat in his opulent study, watched over all the while by a huge portrait of his grandfather Vitaly, and discussed his job offer.

"We want him taken out clean. None of that fucking mess like you made last time. You are lucky that we have chosen to give you another chance." Aleksander fixed me with his cold black eyes.

"Me, lucky?" I snorted. "Not when I'm dealing with you lot."

The expression on his face darkened. I knew it was dangerous to bait these guys, but I also knew that they needed me to do the job.

"This time we don't want it looking like an accident. We have decided that it is time we send a message," Aleksander grinned. "You will find all of the information that you will be needing in this case. Same pay as before."

The Russian slid a black briefcase across his desk towards me. I popped the clips open. It was packed with green hundred Euro notes. There was a beige A4 envelope sitting on top.


"Half now. Half on elimination of the target. Simples." He gave out a little squeak. They always seemed to make that sound when they felt things were going their way. I got up and left without another word being said.

That had been a fortnight ago.

Since then I had been doing my research, scoping out the target and plotting his daily movements. I was determined not to screw this one up like I had with the Jones hit. I still don't know what went wrong with that one, but at least the job had been done and I'd got out without being identified.

Now here I was, sitting in the car, with the engine off, preparing to kill a man who didn't even know I existed. I always found that this was the moment the job got to me. A man was about to die and he didn't even know it.

But fuck it, if I didn't do it, someone else would. At least I was a professional. I'd make it quick. This guy had only been on the scene for a short time and already he'd made a lot of enemies. Many people would consider me a hero for what I was about to do this night. Hell, most of them would probably claim they'd like to pull the trigger themselves.

I had no such illusions.

It was a rainy, moonless night, and I didn't expect there to be anyone about, but I checked my mirrors and stepped out of the car. You can never be too careful in this line of work. Quickly and purposefully I strode up the long drive to the target's house. My pulse quickened as I reached the front door. A few lights were still on, both upstairs and down. This was it. I clenched the gun in my hand. My palms were sweaty, but I knew what had to come next. I rang the doorbell and heard the chorus from George M Cohan's "Over There" reverberate out across the house.

Seconds passed, each one feeling like a lifetime. I could hear his footsteps approaching.

Finally, the door opened, and there on the threshold stood Gio Compario. I pulled out the gun and fired three shots. The opera singer slumped to the floor without making a sound. For once he was silent.

"Go compare this, motherfucker."

I turned back into the cold wet night and hurried towards the car. My hands were shaking as I reached for my phone and fired off a text to the Russians.

"It's done."

I turned the key in the ignition and headed off into the night. Five minutes later, my phone buzzed into life. A new message. It was Aleksander.

"We have some more work for you. Check out the picture below. Find him. Wack him. Simples."

Attached to the text message was a picture of a bald man sporting a cheeky grin. I recognized him immediately. It was Omid Djalili.


I let out a sigh.

Goddamn those fucking meerkats.