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Like its predecessor, the stellar Sleepwalking is steeped in mature songwriting craftsmanship and versatile rhythms that encompass dance, reggae, hip-hop, and left-field ambiance.
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The record closes with "Salvation", an epic comedown, courtesy of a massive vocal by Siron, R&C's liveshow frontwoman.... Such an abrupt end is testament to Sleepwalking's unrelenting desire for boldness and ability to execute such grand designs.
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There is strong instrumental feeling - sometimes joyful, sometimes melancholic and sometimes alluring and seductive - in every single track.
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UrbHip-hop, soul, reggae and other influences are skillfully interwoven into a consistently strong whole.... An engaging, intelligent album. [#82, p.146]
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Alternative PressThe duo's strength is their songwriting skills, which are being honed to a razor's edge here. [#153, p.84]
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Another triumph, brimming with soulful, languid grooves, deft samples and well-chosen guest singers.
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By assembling a heavyweight lineup of talent to support -- including soul legend Bobby Womack, the Congos, and the Pharcyde -- Rae & Christian set lofty aspirations and, more often than not, reach them.
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Not since Bomb the Bass's "Clear" has a British production team re-interpreted aging African American tropes so persuasively.
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SpinAnd while 'Sleepwalking' can't help but sink into the somnambulism its title promises, R&C also get ambitious, abandoning lathery fantasia for something a little earthier. [Apr 2001, p.163]
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Plays like a perfect meld of old school soul, modern day hip-hop and trance like hypnosis, with guest vocalists from all ends of the spectrum binding the event into a surprisingly cohesive whole.
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There's the sense that, in trying to be a Tribe-meets-Portishead hybrid, the Manchester, England, production duo of Mark Rae and Steve Christian have missed the target, as if true brilliance lies just around the corners they didn't turn.
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The record maps for, and makes for, an unhurried listen, stringing between buttery grooves with an apparent smoker's-delight vibe; the set only goes up a notch when The Pharcyde step up to the microphone, their goofy, lithe lyricism upping the relaxed pulse for a pair of fine moments.
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Sleepwalking doesn't have a startling track like Northern Sulphuric's "Spellbound" to lift it out from the polite sludge of trip-hop mush.