Posted on 09/29/2005

 

Mixed Blessings is a very interesting reggae-influenced album from the British artist who goes by the name of Lotek Hi-Fi. The music itself is not just reggae or dancehall; there's slight hints of hip hop weaving in and out of the mix as well. But this slight hint is what drags the album down. It seems that some of the more hip hop oriented songs are trying to appeal to an audience that expects the usual, as if he's trying to be a British 50 Cent or Beanie Siegel, and it does not work.

What did work for me was "Dazzla", where Lotek toasts over some digitally manipulated beatboxing, imagine a more hyperactive Roni Size or the more experimental side of Ming and FS, and you may get a sense of what he's trying to achieve here. The rest of the songs are fairly laid back and accessible.

Lotek Hi-Fi has collaborated with Roots Manuva over the years, but Roots Manuva has a bit of substance that Lotek has yet to find for himself, at least in long form. Fortunately, Roots appears here in one of the album's brighter moments, "Move Ya Ting", along with Sandra Melody, known for working with Diplo on his track "Newsflash".

Some of the songs here stand out as candidates as singles, but Mixed Blessings would have been better as a trimmed down EP rather than a full length effort. Because of the low valleys scattered about, Mixed Blessings becomes a bit of a chore to get through.