Baby Mammoth are Hull residents Mark Blissenden and Andrew Burdall. Forming as Baby Mammoth in 1994 and recording for Pork the year after, the duo have been responsible for some mighty fine jazz-influenced down tempo music
In fact, they've recorded an astonishing six albums worth in the last five years. Such prolific activity is due largely to their organic, natural way of working they allegedly just get in the studio, grab an idea and see what comes out of it. Luckily for them they have a knack of making good, infectious music and the best is featured on this retrospective.
Mixed together into one mellifluous whole, the duo have included tunes like 'I'm Not Joking' with it's addictive, loping rhythms and vocal sample, 'Hoodwinked' which raises the bpm slightly but still maintains a chilled aura, even with it's acidic undertones.
Then there's 'Mysterious Muses' with it's pleasant vocal refrain and 'Tasty Maloney' which sees them on a more housy tip initially before dropping into a typically Mammothian piece of quirk. 'Slipping Jigsaws' is a nice hip hop roller with loose guitar riffs and funky bass and 'The Ghost Of Henry' gets all quasi-Latin.
Blunted hip hop beats, jazz-influenced melodies (Tom Harland plays some neat jazz guitar in places), mellow vocal refrains, a dash of dub and some wise old blues is what goes into the Baby Mammoth sound - it's all good, serene stuff that gets right inside your brain and soul.
