Album Review: Various Artists - Ministry Of Sound Presents: FUT.UR.ISM

As with all fast-paced, dynamic genres of music, it seemed only a matter of time before a heavyweight compilation outfit ran the acid test on the oh-so-young genre of future beats. Already leaving a bad taste in the mouth of “veterans” of the roughly five-year-old foray into hip hop-infused glitch bass, this label has been affixed to a plethora of acts that simply don't fit the true profile in Ministry Of Sound's clusterfuck compilation FUT.UR.ISM.

Disc one starts out as they know it should, with bedroom-to-bedroom-wall producer Flume and the single from his 2012 album, Holding On. Just three songs in however, things take a turn for the weird. The introduction of Chet Faker at this point is confusing, but not unwelcome; a track you remember as relatively on-point once you've succumbed to the cold, clammy grip of the true desperados in this amalgamation album (Passion Pit? Frank Ocean?? Groove Armada???).

There are a few gems from Purity Ring, AlunaGeorge and Scuba; but an obvious and surprising lack of LuckyMe!/Donky Pitch/Numbers/anyone of real importance in what Ministry describes as the “Dream Bass revolution”. What's more, the exclusion of vital players such as Hudson Mohawke, Rustie, Machinedrum and so on to make way for Grimes, Alt J and The xx is disappointing.

It really does seem like a handful of songs from last year thrown on the iPod your dad scored for Christmas and still doesn't know how to update. Ministry Of Sound have attempted to tie so many standalone genres to the title of “future” (redefining it as any modern music with an electronic touch) that they've simply made a CD that is more confused than it is mixed.