Dusk + Blackdown vs. Grievous Angel

When Dusk + Blackdown's Margins Music first came out in 2008, it offered a spare, Arabesque-tinged take on the dub-step template. The album, although a solid debut, mostly flew under the radar. Now, over a year later, Redux comes out of nowhere, a full-album remix from fellow dub-step producer Grievous Angel, who improves on the street credentials of the original, much like Mad Professor delivered Massive Attack's Protection to a completely new realm of admirers. Grievous Angel's main contribution here is to amp up the beats, adding a dimension that pulls away from traditional dub-step and into the fractured world of post-grime. Not only does this approach make for a more engaging listen, production-wise, but it also elevates the guest appearances from grime rappers like Durrty Goodz and others, making this redux not only a worthy companion to Margins Music, but one that rises above the already strong precedent set by its predecessor.