Before you listen to this album, I suggest that you prepare yourself. Don’t accidentally turn it on with the volume control turned up to 11. When I first heard this record I didn't know what was going on, mainly because I pressed 'play' by accident and the sounds that came out of my speaker sounded apocalyptic. Had we finally stumbled into the end of the world? A horrid, but oddly pleasant, natural, yet industrial whirring sound blasted out of the speakers, making me momentarily fear for my life.

Now on to more important stuff: although the start did unnerve me, after the initial horror, a burst of delightful bubble effects emerged over the top. These enchanting and random sound effects are the basis of this album for me. Starkey really has gone all out to make this EP something different. And I’m pleased to say he has got it just about right. I didn’t quite know what to expect, thinking that perhaps he'd churn out something like the all too familiar ‘bro-step’ mid-range bile that is spewing through most national radio stations these days. Happily, he surprised me with his creativity and diversity. Another key selling point is the bass, which, of course, you’d expect with Starkey. The bass lines are either very deep, dark and heavy or smooth and textured, nothing gritty about this record at all, which is a refreshing change! The other points that you’d have to regard as huge positives are the choice of samples that he uses, whether they be voice samples, trumpets, or just found sounds and nature noises. Each is very well-chosen and fits in smoothly. I could really get a sense of some of his influences. It felt as though he had plucked sounds from a broad spectrum. But, overall, you get a Luke Vibert feel from a lot of his tracks especially because of the samples he chooses. I could easily imagine Luke Vibert producing at least one of the tracks on this EP, but still it has Starkey’s own distinctive style incorporated.

Now, this is a record that has 2 sides, the tracks on the first side are all original and those on the second side are an array of remixes. The remixes are done by pretty unknown artists, with the exception of Ital Tek, who does a sterling job of remixing ‘Playing with Fire’. This is possibly the most ‘dubstep’ of all the tracks on the EP. Luckily all the remixes do the originals a lot of justice. In fact, I’d rate one of the remixes as the best track on the EP: ‘Paradise (+ Verb Remix)’ is to my ears a mind-bogglingly good track, in the style of Flying Lotus’ hip-hop glitch. The drumming and synths flow beautifully together; the synths are very ‘outer spacey’ which, fortunately, is what this album is trying to be about, and successfully so.

Having said the above, I don’t really want to bash this release too much. I have a lot of respect for it. There are a few problems though. Unfortunately, it is too diverse to provide a pleasurable listen in a single sitting. It goes too quickly from deep dub styled tracks to a track on which Anneka sings ('Paradise'). While this is a good song, it is completely out of place on this record. It should have really been saved for another release with a more down tempo chilled out feel. Maybe it was intentionally designed this way, but every track on this record is preceded and/or followed by one that doesn’t quite fit with it. The result is a feeling of being slightly underwhelmed. On top of that there are too many remixes of ‘Paradise’ on the second half the record. There only needs to be one remix of it and that should be the outstanding ‘+ Verb Remix’.

Overall though, the positives definitely outweigh the negatives. Every track is of a high standard and, from a production point of view, absolutely spot on. No clashing of instruments and nothing on any one track feels out of place. If the selection and order of the tracks had been a little more carefully thought through, this EP would be truly exceptional. So, buy it and listen to one track every half hour. You’ll conclude, as I have done, that this record is an absolute must have. Just don't be a hero and attempt to listen to it all at once.