Name: Morcheeba
They are: Ross Godfrey (Guitar), Paul Godfrey (Decks) and Skye Edwards (Vocals)
Genre: “Dub-soul-trip-rock-meditation-trance-pop� as quoted by MixMag
Releases: Who Can You Trust (1996), Big Calm (1998), Fragments of Freedom (2000), Changro (2002) and Parts of the Process (2003).

As Paul Godfrey once told a press conference of Russian journalists, “we never repeat ourselves. And we smoke a lot.� Both of these points can be seen surveying their eight year career in the industry, where each album takes on a uniquely and experimentally different turn, obviously never repeating styles. And hey for smoking, just see them on stage, cigarette in one hand. Bingo, there you go.

Setting the scene...

Morcheeba really can’t be classified into a strict genre, as everything they do has different flavours and influences, giving them the potential to produce some really innovative music. Their first single Trigger Hippie was released in 1996 and became a hit in the underground music scene. With each album release, Morcheeba nabbed a new type of following. Big Calm grabbed onto those groovy chillout beats perfect for your socialite dinner party, such as The Sea, and Fragments of Freedom pulled in the pop, disco and funk fanatics with hits such as World Looking In and a faithful cover of the Motown classic Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day. 2002’s Changro was loved by fans with its Brazillian feel, and two American (c)rappers which drew in the (c)rap enthusiasts. Over four original albums, four diversely different genres have been experimented with and have shown not only their fantastic ability in songwriting and their musicianship, but also their ability to broaden their own horizons as developing artists in a competitive and constantly changing music industry.

Parts of the Process, released in 2003, totals up their previous albums for an 18-track best-of type deal, including nearly all of their chart singles as well as some new music. This DVD is a concert of their tour for this release. Shot in Brixton in November of 2002, this concert captures the humour, attitude and passion of Morcheeba in full swing, and showcases a simply stunning live set of music. While some concerts are just boring to watch, the production team behind this DVD have used a variety of visually interesting and different techniques to exacerbate Morcheeba’s own revolutionary style of music with an equally dazzling visual display. This is the sort of DVD that you can stick in, crank up and just chill out to, even though it does have some absolutely killer beats and percussion. It’s simply an awesome performance and just 100 minutes of pure bliss. Edwards’ vocals are so soaring and powerful that they just drive the set along with an angelic yet devilishly naughty quality, really boasting true musical talent. If you haven’t heard Morcheeba then you’re really missing out on something, and if you’re unsure about which CD to buy, grab this DVD with a fantastic 20-track concert and an awesome presentation to boot. For lovers of high-quality music, Morcheeba are definitely for you. Bordering on trip-hop, chillout, groove, pop, funk and disco, they have something for every occasion, showing true diversity and enthusiasm for music.

Track listing...

Then it all comes into focus... sort of.

Warner Vision’s fantastic presentation starts with the anamorphically-enhanced video transfer, delivered in the widescreen aspect of 1.78:1 - and boy is she a beauty! Colours are richly presented, luminously capturing the electric power of the elaborate lighting rig, as well as superbly mastering the deep black levels. Only a few very vague cases of low level noise can be seen at very rare intervals, but these are not distracting in the least, and generally the colours are just so solid. Shadows are heavy and thick, guided by the intentionally ambient lighting, so faces have eyes that look like skeletons. Still, the transfer faithfully captures the filmed conditions, which were like that, so hey, it’s not really the transfer’s fault. One sign of fantabulism is the effects of the lighting, showing absolutely no sign of posterisation and capturing a million shades of blue with such poise and stability. Simply put, the firmness of the colours on this transfer illustrates how to successfully transfer a live set to DVD while capturing the beauty of the real event. Take note MPEG compressors – this is how it is done.

The clarity of the image is slightly debatable, with the complex lighting often glaring the image with shades of electric blue. But really in the whole scheme of things it’s whether things look good, and with the editing style and photography considered, these focus lapses are a great effect. The trio in charge of on and offline editing have put together a high-energy presentation, giving a rather off-beat delivery of a live concert. So instead of your static, mounted cameras, we have some shots of handheld DV work and others using more professional techniques. Just the way that the concert was shot is so innovative, along with Morcheeba’s own unique style, and gives such an amazing presentation for this truly underrated band.

Subtitles have been included in a variety of languages for some unknown reason, as they only capture the speech in between tracks such as the odd “thank you� and the like. Now come on, where are the lyrics? The only noticeable downside to the disc is the layer change, occurring at 62:43, where a slight gap in the audio is heard. But with the high quality audio tracks included, it makes it a bit tight to fit on a single layer.

Two audio tracks have been included on this disc, giving fantastic mixes to listen to. First up is a Linear PCM stereo track at 1536KB/s which gives an unbelievably clear rendition of the concert, and is perfect for those highly-strung audio enthusiasts who demand their CD quality sound. Bass levels are supportive without being overdone, and the clarity of the sound is superb, with very little excessive crowd noise.

Electrifying the night

The Dolby Digital 5.1 track, at the DD maximum rate of 448KB/s, has some incredibly loud surrounds at times, making you feel like you have some fanatical twat screaming in your ears. Luckily when the gig kicks into full swing these tone down to provide ambience and an echo effect to complete the concert atmosphere. The woofer, however, does get a hefty workout with some gurgling low frequencies. You know, the ones that you feel rather than hear? MMMmmm vibratey... but anyway... For the bass fans there is still plenty to hear too, as well as feel. These two tracks are excellent examples of high-quality audio tracks without giving you a million different choices with minute changes between each. So it’s either stereo or 5.1, but you can feel comfortable picking either as both are top-notch tracks. There’s no DTS but who cares? How can you improve what’s already perfect?

Gateway to this world

After the initial copyright warnings and slightly out-dated Warner Music Vision tag, we are given some 16:9 enhanced menus that just look amazing. They are simple, yet stylised and sophisticated, providing clear navigation and a really crisp look. Rather than blinding the viewer with confusion, misdirection and gimmicks, we are given a straightforward yet classy menu system that is slickly animated and it’s good to see at least one company doing it right. What’s even better is that it features Dolby Digital 5.1 audio – bonus! From the main menu you can start the concert, see the track listing, visit Beijing or setup the DVD. Beijing is a 24 minute look at Morcheeba, presented in an anamorphically enhanced aspect of 2.35:1, on their first-ever tour to China, and includes footage from their Chinese performances as well as interviews about their experiences abroad. It’s like their home movies professionally made. Songs performed include The Sea, Be Yourself, Trigger Hippie, Friction, Part of the Process, Love Sweet Love and Rome Wasn’t Built In A Day. although none are presented in their entirety. Oh and yes, it really is Skye – the addition of hair is a little strange after watching the concert but it’s still her. The downside to this featurette is that it is too darn short – just as soon as you want it to take off, it ends. But oh well, at least 24 minutes is better than four. While the possibilities of features are endless (it’s a music title after all), this is where this paragraph ends, as the only inclusion is this featurette. Sad, but true.

Hmm, now for the final word, and this is a tough one. Is it a must-have DVD for your collection? Yeah baby, grab this one. It’s groovy, it’s funky, it’s seriously chilled and it will make your living room go off. This disc showcases most of Morcheeba’s singles over the past eight years and puts them together with an innovative presentation of the 2002 Brixton concert as well as a fantabulous transfer from Warner Vision. OK, the lack of extra features is a bit iffy, but still, extra features or not, this disc proudly stands in this reviewer’s DVD collection both technically, musically and artistically. Go get ‘em, tiger!