Next Life CD

The unfortunate passing of DJ Rashad earlier this year is still being felt throughout the footwork community, but this compilation from Hyperdub and Teklife looks to celebrate his legacy. All the major players are present - including, of course, Rashad himself - while the unmixed collection does an excellent job of representing the far-sighted take on the style that's come to the fore over the last 12 months. Highlights are naturally plentiful, from the skittish breaks and sci-fi stabs of DJ Tre's "DNB Spaceout" and synth-laden beauty of Sirr Tmo's "Live In Chicago Subways", to the ghetto-tech bounce of Boylan's "He Watching Us" and Rashad's poignant dancefloor smasher "OTS" (a hook-up with Spinn, Taso & Mann). All proceeds from the Nextlife compilation go to Rashad's son too.