At first listen, I was straight-away reminded of Massive Attack's Blue Lines album when hearing Sanchita Farruque's slightly muffled and repetitive vocals combined with Mo Magic's loungy, Acid Jazz-esque acoustic percussion arrangement carried by the subtle bass lines George Trubar plays.
Listening to this single, Mo Magic shines obviously as a talented producer - his sound is smooth but has an edge that maintains your attention and he makes good use of elements like wah-effected guitar and understated tabla rhythms, alongside an up-tempo rhythm, to achieve this.
I found Stupid Games' vocals irritating initially but they grew quickly on me after the first listen through both mixes on the disc - then I realised why I likened this track to early Massive Attack: Sanchita makes excellent use of repeating somewhat abstract lyrics (ie. They don't follow a narrative progression - its more a ‘piece' than a ‘song') in a catchy harmony and Mo masterfully matches this harmony to other musical elements and effects in the track.
I don't think I have heard a new song in this construction for quite some time - essentially both mixes are the same except the second features additional, very well placed, percussion hits and is generally more driving, plus its vocals are slightly rearranged. For me, this is an unusual find as both mixes are equally great but, speaking as a disc jockey, individually more suited for separate environments.
Overall, Stupid Games is worth picking up for a couple of reasons; first, it is in fact trip hop of a truer era that will take you head-noddingly back to those promising days of the young 90's, and second, if you still make mixed tapes - you'll definitely want to put one mix on each side!
