Bounce at the Devil Fish Don't Fear Nets Records ****
From their own inimitable brand of hip-hop, through sleazy soul and swaggering funk, Mick Pyro co have always ploughed their own furrow, oblivious to popular trends. Their fourth album comes after a shake-up in personnel, and sees the Dubliners now morph into a dance act. Much of
Bounce at the Devil
is tangled up in banging, electro-laced club tunes (
My Heroez)
, although Pyro’s devotion to soul is never far away with the smooth, Al Green-esque
What Kind of Man Would I Be
? That said, Republic of Loose’s biggest obstacle remains a lack of ruthlessness in the editing process: severing three or four superfluous tracks would have made for an even tighter record. Nevertheless, this is a lot of fun. See republic ofloose.com
Download tracks: My Heroez, What Kind of Man Would I Be?
* Republic of Loose play the Academy, Dublin on October 15th
