OM UNIT (Civil Music/UK)

Undoubtedly, one of The Operatives’ long-time favourites OM UNIT is returning to Australia. 

Jim Coles has spent the past three years refining his unique sound with releases on Metalheadz, Exit Records, Terrorhythm and Civil Music. Including collaborations with MACHINEDRUM (as Dream Continuum on Planet Mu) plus his short-lived, much hyped footwork-jungle alias ‘Phillip D. Kick’ as well as a series of high-profile remixes – you can see the confluence of all this work takes full flight on his debut album ‘Threads’.

Grounded in Coles’ junglistic roots, a relationship that has driven much of his recent output and DJ work, ‘Threads’ connects the dots between many genres, taking in hip-hop, jungle, bassweight and slow/fast. It features Gone The Hero,(a mysterious new project to be unveiled on JNERIO JAREL’s label Who imprint in 2014), Jinadu, Young Echo’s MC Jabu, and London’s urban poet, and legend, Charlie Dark. While ‘Threads’ is a debut full length for OM UNIT it is in fact the producer’s fourth studio album, following from work in the 2000s as hip hop producer 2tall, a name under which as turntablist he was a DMC finalist and featured on the late John Peels legendary BBC radio show.

In between a immensely hectic touring schedule, taking in much of Europe, North America, Japan and representing for Tempo Clash alongside, Blue Daisy, Kutmah, Kidkanevil and Offshore (R.I.P) the RBMA 2011 graduate has been heading up a “slow/fast” revolution and launching new sounds with his own label Cosmic Bridge, where he is responsible for introducing artists Danny Scrilla and Moresounds amongst others and has also released a series of ltd edition and now highly sought “Edits” 10″s.

It is perhaps cliché to claim that a record is a standout, a classic before its time, or that the producer is one of the hardest working and most unique, yet Coles’ maturation as a producer over the past decade, synthesising influences and references across his prolific output makes Threads truly feels like it has that classic potential and that Om Unit is a producer deserving of the hype.

www.omunit.com