[Vakant R]

It’s somewhat beyond me why we’re just now hearing the second remix package for Onur Özer’s Kasmir album two years after its release. Though it might seem a bit redundant, we’ve not heard much from the young Turk since Kasmir, so consider it a long overdue stopgap. Tardiness gripes aside, Özer will have bought himself a good chunk of time by enrolling Isolée and Baby Ford to remix “Innervoice” and “Aida” respectively as their interpretations will keep fans buzzing for some time.

Isolée drives “Innervoice” away from the suspense-filled, incidental Turkish orchestral hits that proliferated the original towards a grooving minimal funk epic. Sounding like he’s utilizing each part of the source material, Isolée clips most of the sounds into fragments of what they used to be, repackaging them around an acoustic double bass sound that drives the remix with an astonishingly effective, yet simple groove. Some of those Turkish horns turn up without the ethnic identity of the original take, here instead drawing attention to the electronic and organic contrasts of this outstanding remix.

On first contact Baby Ford’s remix of “Aida” comes across as an unyielding, impenetrable beige fortress, but studied inspection of those hessian-hued walls brings them crumbling down to reveal an inventive, finely nuanced piece of minimalism. Ford infects his hi-hats and other higher frequency percussion with such a strong sense of swing it feels like its breathing rhythmically throughout the track. Where the original played out with more melodic structure, it is this kinetic feeling that helps to carry the otherwise fairly barren remix as it highlights the slight use of other sounds, giving them even more onus. Whilst Baby Ford’s remix doesn’t have the same instant appeal as the original, its subtle turns and overall feel provide an excellent alternative.