Waves Riddim – Various Soca Artists

Out of Barbados, Waves Riddim feels like a compact 2012 carnival-time soca set, all springy percussion, bright keyboard lines and a bass pulse that keeps the energy up without getting too crowded. The three tunes keep the focus tight: Answar’s “Push It” leans into party command mode, B Roca’s “Ready To Party” has the most direct jump-up feel, and Inches’ “Jiggle It” adds the cheeky movement that usually makes a soca riddim catch in the road. With only three cuts, the project plays like a snapshot of that era’s Bajan party sound, when riddims were made to be lean, loud and built for fast rotation during the season.