This week's hip-hop releases reviewed

VARIOUS

7 x 7 Beat, All City ****

Besides being the go-to record store for Dublin b-boys and girls looking for the latest hip-hop cuts, All City also runs a label that has really hit paydirt over the past 12 months. By concentrating on new and rising producers, All City's run of seven-inch singles has been a compelling series of snapshots of what's going on right now in that area where hip-hop and electronics intersect. You could treat 7 x 7 Beat– the compilation that rounds up all those vinyl releases to date – as a state-of- the-nation address for a nation that doesn't really have a name yet. There are highlights galore here, especially the brassy swing of Street Corner Musicfrom Los Angeles-based producer Snowman, the emphatic future-facing sounds of Hudson Mohawke, Onra's wonky space-age strut and the thrilling bounce of Mike Slott's Knock Knock. www.all-cityrecords.com

Download tracks: Snowman - Street Corner Music; Mike Slott - Knock Knock; Hudson Mohawke - Star Crackout