‘Inner Tribe Records Remixed’ delivers 12 brand new remixes of notable cuts from the Inner Tribe Records catalogue. The album, released 8th April 2022, sees London UK producer Chris Read place his spin on a dozen songs from the label, with a list of featured artists which includes Detroit rap legend Phat Kat, long time Dilla collaborator Steve Spacek, Japan’s Mitsu the Beats, Ubiquity Records’ Ohmega Watts and late Oakland MC Zion-I among many others.
Remixes of tracks by New York vocalist Tan Brown and Inner Tribe mainstays Planetself bring a contemporary Neo Soul flavour to the table, while reworks of cuts by a cast of rappers that includes John Robinson, Tokyo Dawn’s Stan Smith and Yarah Bravo ensure Hip Hop is well represented. Styles and influences merge throughout: Read’s remix for Dream Crews (Mitsu the Beats & Flow4dayz) effortlessly blends influences that include 80s Synth Boogie, contemporary Hip Hop and 90s R&B, while more uptempo reworks of tracks featuring Inner Tribe label boss Inkswel plus Colonel Red, Steve Spacek and Harvey Sutherland draw influence from London’s Broken Beat sound. Whatever the feel or tempo, Jazz is a unifying theme in this collection assembled by a producer whose work perfectly encapsulates the meeting point of Jazz, Soul, Hip Hop and the myriad contemporary sounds those genres spawned.
After years of releases on labels like BBE, Sonar Kollektiv, Rush Hour and countless others as well as works with Pugs Atomz, John Robinson, People Without Shoes, Wild Cookie, LMNO, Steve Spacek, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Blu, Inkswel has finally launched his own label. Together with Charli Umami, the label focusses on the foundations that first inspired the couple, that being Hip Hop and Neo Soul. Enter Inner Tribe. A play on words, the labels ethos speaks to invoke the vibe and spirit within us all, and that original vibe being what drew the two towards Hip Hop and its many off shoots.