February News Round-Up

It’s been a busy start to the year here at Westbury HQ, so we thought we’d take a few minutes away from the madness to share what some members of the Westbury family have been getting up to.

UK Bass Music label RAMP has recently celebrated its 50th release, and marks the occasion by delving into its eclectic back catalogue to bring a great compilation featuring seventeen of its best tracks from the last six years of the label's existence. Amongst the artists representing Westbury on RAMP50 are Shortstuff and Dro Carey, and you’ll be able to find it in all good record shops on March 26th .

You can hear Dro Carey’s Motorvibe below:

March also sees the release of the highly anticipated Scratcha DVA album Pretty Ugly on Hyperdub. We’ve had a sneak preview of this here in the office, and we can comfortably say it’s going to be melting stereos for a long time! Drawing on a real mixture of influences, recording for the album has seen Scratcha fly as far as South Africa to find the perfect vocalists for his unique tracks. As anyone who caught his Boiler Room session at the end of last year will agree, the album’s going to be big! You can read an interview with Scratcha here.

Stones Throw artist and all-round cool dude James Pants has been busy too, collaborating with rap collective of the moment Odd Future. He’s leant his production techniques to a new track by the reclusive Earl Sweatshirt, and again, this track has barely been off the office stereo since we first heard it. Thanks to our friends at Red Bull Music Academy, you can hear it here:

Sticking with Stones Throw, our favourite rappers MED and Guilty Simpson have been working on an album with Portishead main man Geoff Barrow. Quakers is released on March 26th, and we’re looking forward to getting our hands on a copy soon.

Dutch techno legend Speedy J has announced that his popular Electric Deluxe parties will take to the road this year, as well as one in their spiritual home of Amsterdam, the party heads to Switzerland, and most excitingly pitches up right on our doorstep in Brixton. We really can’t wait to welcome Speedy J and the Electric Deluxe crew to our neighbourhood, and if you fancy coming along tickets and more information is available here.

In reggae news, our good friend Niney The Observer and his legendary production skills are gracing two new CDs out now. First up is Live At The Turntable Club, which when it was recorded in 1974 was the first Jamaican live album, and has now finally been released for the first time on CD, and features the likes of Dennis Brown and Delroy Wilson lending their voices to Niney's tunes. The second album, a 4 disc box entitled Deep Roots Observer Style, is a collection of three rare Niney-produced albums, Dennis Brown’s Deep Down, The Heptones' Better Days and Page One & The Observers' Observations of Life Dub, alongside a number of hit singles recorded with I Roy in 1976 and 1977. Both are available now through 17th North Parade Records.

You can hear a cut from Better Days here:


So that’s it from us for now, but keep your eyes peeled for more exciting news from the Westbury family over the coming weeks and months.