Elsewhere: Quango label jumps on the brandwagon

By GRAHAM REID

Interesting, isn't it, that parallel to the rise of brand recognition of the Nike/Starbucks kind, the record label artists appear on has become important.

Once only a few people bothered about which label someone was on (U2 on Island? So?), but with the growth of DJs labouring under anonymous names (and sometimes numerous noms de disque) somehow sharing the same letterhead as DJ Crush or whoever implies a cultural cachet or art of a similar quality.

Can't see it myself but in a world where Naomi Klein, the poster girl for the anti-globalisation movement, is warning us of the insidiousness of label culture, here's a brief label story.

Quango was hot stuff in the mid-90s when it fired out compilations and mixes by the likes of Talvin Singh, Kruder and Dorfmeister and others. Albums on Quango included early tracks by Tricky, Sneaker Pimps and Basement Jaxx, so it was pretty astute.

Quango seemed to go on hold but, as with Classic Coke, it has come back to reclaim its place in this crazy remixed-up world.

Mainman behind the label (which came through Chris Blackwell's Island) was LA DJ/producer Bruno Guez who has teamed up with Blackwell again for a series of Quango releases on Blackwell's Palm Pictures, available here through FMR.

The quango.com website is still under construction (it promises a radio station, and will work with cafe and boutique owners to help them get the right vibe for their environment) but it looks like an expansionist branding exercise based around stylishly packaged albums. Less a music label then than a provider of cooler-than-thou lifestyle accessories.

The Mystic Groove collection of Indo-ambient and trip-hop was reviewed in this week's e.g. (three stars: "the new exotica with the same veneer of sophistication as the old") and in the new batch are dub, cosmic funk, electronica, Brazilian and spaced out electronica jazz collections.

Space Jazz is one of those ambient, unassuming trip-hop albums designed for homes where people live in a permanent state of chill-out as they drink martinis and perch on Philippe Starck stools. It claims to have links with Sun Ra's philosophies and music (few perceptible to these Ra-familiar ears) but let's just describe it as vaguely trippy and atmospheric.

It includes a Boozoo Bajou remix of a track by Tosca (which is Dorfmeister and another Viennese mate) and other people who have names like trademarks. Not bad, but nothing special.

Dub Selector is better, although there's a G-Corp remix of Luciano's soulful treatment of Police and Thieves which has none of the yearning desperation the lyrics require. Elsewhere, Seven Dub offer a languid Rock It Tonight which should have you reaching for the dimmer switch, there's the lengthy and romantically spooky Andub Head Yudu by France's Grant Phabao, Kieser. Velten from Vienna weigh in with the hypnotic Dubolition, and St Germain offers an authentic Dub Experience.

This is mostly European electro-dub with plenty of attention to surfaces and no attempt at true deep-dub Jamaican style. But you can't criticise something for what it was not trying to be and this is certainly more than just aural wallpaper, although it suits that purpose too. Recommended.

Brazilified features faux-Latin club grooves from Euro-DJs and producers (some of whom work with genuine Rio singers) and while those whose tastes run to genuine, life-affirming samba styles will recoil from this superficial clubland take, this is pleasant enough for those who prefer to dance in their heads.

The eight-track Cosmic Funk collection offers a bunch of names familiar to clubheads, notably The Funky Lowlives, Migs and Jelly, and Neon Phusion.

As with Dub Selector this doesn't go for depth ("There's no Parliament/Funkadelic here folks; move right along, please") but again aims for atmospherics which only by the most casual definition could be called "cosmic funk". But put the name aside - or call it Studio-sheen London Funk if you will - and it's not bad at all. Funky Lowlives offer the warm and slippery Latazz and the equally liquid Notabossa, and Kaidi Tatham's Armz Arh Deh is a quiet gem.

And finally Lush Life isn't what it's subtitle says, "a timeless excursion into soulful electronica".

It includes tracks by Phenomyna, Soul Circuit and Blueshift, but there's nothing to give our own Kog any concerns. Extremely ordinary. Pass.

So there you have it. A label story for the label conscious generations. Bet they do a line of clothing soon.