* En anglais uniquement
Part of Bristol-based Cup of Tea Records' eclectic roster, the Federation bring the deliciously sultry grooves of Trip-Hop to a realm several shades closer to jazz and Funk, while retaining the music's hip-hop roots. Their diverse repertoire ranges from whimsical, spacious instrumental groove tunes to heart-on-the-sleeve ballads. A Herbie Hancock-influenced jazz piano paints in broad strokes upon a background of swirling ambient synthesizers and barely audible horn snippets -- all supported by acoustic bass and Latin percussion. Hip-hop beats, vocal samples, turntable scratches, and droning psychedelic guitar lines form the background for songs that meander from drifting refrains to cutely British-accented rhyming. Deep, somber strings and overwrought opera samples weave through irresistibly catchy Funk anthems, while spy-soundtrack piano vamps and jazzy acoustic basslines lead into twitchy Jungle breakbeats. Very few acts bring together acoustic instrumentation and electronic manipulation with this much success -- the Federation have truly updated soul music for the twenty-first century.