As his alter-ego, "Kid Koala", might suggest, Eric San applies a joyous childlike vision to his music on Some of My Best Friends Are DJs. Following turns with Money Mark, Deltron 3030 and Lovage, Canada's cheekiest mixologist defied weighty expectations with his beguiling debut album, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Three years later, and Kid Koala has retained his youthful verve. Packaged with a 52-page, self-penned comic and a travel chess kit, Some of My Best Friends Are DJs offers less in the way of music, with the 35-minute running time meaning the restless sonic snippets wisely end before his humour has a chance to grate. Mixing sleazy whisky-bar vibes with adolescent antics, his second album never allows the listener to settle. Moments of playful mixing magic are at times followed by baffling inanity as "Skanky Panky"-with its wonderfully shattered Ska rhythm and frantic scratches-runs into "Flu Season", ostensibly a series of beat-accompanied coughs, sneezes and sniffs. Blending blues, jazz and funk with a myriad of bizarre samples, moments of pure eccentric genius such as "Robochacha" and "More Dance Music" make this a flawed yet fascinating slice of beat-driven bravura. -Christopher Barrett.

A product of post-Acid-House Manchester, Mr Scruff is a complete one-off; a cheeky innovator. His debut album is a bold statement, distinctive and confident. Keep It Unreal oscillates wildly between opposing styles-one moment Scruff's in deep, down-tempo dinner jazz territory, the next he's in Coldcut mode, chopping out superb big beat breaks with naughty hooklines to get you pogoing. At one extreme is the wacko humour of Spandex Man, bolshi Fatboy Slim breakbeat and a silly 1920s swing loop that'll make you grin. And then there's the even more ridiculous "Shanty Town", with samples of a Jacknory story about a whale. At the other end of the scale, is Scruff's accomplished acid jazz-like the serene, trip-hoppy "Midnight Feast" or the smoothie cocktail number "Honeydew", with it's loungey female vocals. This man is out there, the Salvador Dali of beats and breaks. -Sarah Champion.

Released as a tribute to the fact that Coldcut's legendary Ninja Tune imprint had been releasing records for a decade, this collection from the label's South London HQ showcases the rich array of talent they've amassed over the years. Though assembled in the same spirit as the seminal Ninja Cuts series, comprising of a mixture of back catalogue and material exclusive to the compilation, a crafty alteration of the title acts as a nod to the ten years since Bogus Order's "Zen Brakes" first fought its way onto a turntable. From the Steinski intro the tracklisting of the first of two compact discs has a distinct hip-hop leaning, slinking through lyrical activity from the likes of the Dynamic Syncopation before flipping a skit from Roots Manuva over Amon Tobin's "Saboteur" and dropping down to the sultry vocals of Sarah Jones, paralleling the Gil Scott Heron standard in its declaration that the "revolution will not be between these thighs. " Flip to the second disc for a demonstration of Ninja's recent foray into cinematic funk, whether through the raging percussion of Chris Bowden or breathtaking orchestration of Clifford Gilberto's "Restless," the resultant experience is nothing if not widescreen. Settle down and reset your ears for two hours of cross dressing, genre bending bliss from one of the UK's most innovative record labels. -Kingsley Marshall.

Deep Red is the debut LP from Deadly Avenger. The first the world knew of Damon Baxter's new moniker was when he dropped his Illicit EPback in 1998. Though he had already released material under the guise of Sem on Depth Charge's Electron Industries imprint, this new alias-released on his own Illicit label-ushered in a new, soundtrack-based direction. Significantly, the EP featured a record called "We Took Pelham", a layered, string-laden track inspired by Bill Conti's "Going The Distance" track which Baxter had re-recorded using a 47-piece Hungarian orchestra and some deep electro-inspired breakbeat. Deep Red, his debut long player, is a continuation of this overtly cinematic route. Skeptics of the 'filmic' category can rest assured that this is not yet another beatmakers homage to Lalo Schifrin though. Baxter is more thoughtful than that, building a sweeping, majestic, electro-influenced masterpiece that draws more from the sinister soundscapes of John Carpenter (Halloween, Escape From New York) than the overly-used lushness of John Barry. There are a few more pedestrian electro moments that hark back to Baxter's previous dancefloor role, but mostly Deep Red is an excellently edgy work that makes most 'imaginary soundtrack' LP's seem shallow. -Paul Sullivan.

Like the recent Brace Yourself by mu-Ziq, this fun and funky four-song offering from Wagon Christ (a. k. a. Luke Vibert, who also records drum & bass tunes as Plug) goes a long way toward putting a happy, even downright silly, face on techno. The madcap opener, "Rendleshack" (from his forthcoming LP Tally Ho!), sounds like a sparkling '50s television commercial crossed with a video game celebrating "high score" over and over. Dotted with flute samples, the downtempo "Breakage No. 1" delivers all of the foreplay but none of the release of Van McCoy's "Do the Hustle," while the beckoning strings of "Breakage No. 2" are the closest this 16-minute outing gets to menacing-which is to say, not very. -Kurt B. Reighley.