Soiree Riddim – Star Blu Entertainment

Star Blu Entertainment’s 2013 Soiree Riddim sits in the leaner end of the soca catalogue, with just five cuts and no dead weight, which gives the project a tidy, archival feel. Chucky’s “No Coast Thing, ” Daddy Chinee’s “Ay Mama, ” Dev’s “Play Ah Mas, ” Lyrikal’s “What Ah Feeling, ” and T-Rock’s “Body On Fire” all ride the same bright, carnival-ready groove, but the arrangement leaves room for each voice to lean into its own phrasing. The riddim itself keeps a brisk, forward-moving pulse, with clipped percussion, a firm low-end throb, and enough bounce in the drum pattern to carry the call-and-response style that soca depends on. Lyrikal sounds especially at home on it, but the whole set hangs together on that sharp, driving tempo and a bass line that never lets the energy sag.