Mystic Blade Riddim – Various Artists

Infamous’ “Bounce” gives Mystic Blade Riddim its sharpest opening, and hearing it in both raw and clean versions tells you this 2008 set was aimed squarely at the soundsystem circuit. The rest of the lineup keeps that same direct, no-frills energy, with Alysha’s “Stamina Man, ” Ziggy’s “On Fire, ” and Squeezy Rankin’s “Love Her Hard” each riding the groove in a slightly different way, while Rizon and the Fatta and Noah Proppa cut add a bit more shape to the juggling. Madmen Productions out of Trinidad and Tobago put this one together, and it sits neatly alongside the tougher, street-ready end of their catalogue rather than any polished roots work. The instrumental closes it out cleanly, leaving Mystic Blade as one of those compact mid-2000s reggae riddims built for selectors who want the version as much as the vocals.