NMCP STUDIO – ZARECORD 3 12″

The 3rd installment of the world-renowned classic scratch tool series, Zarecord 3 marks the project’s evolution from a collection of underground beat loopers and dubplates, into a game-changing artistic concept.

NMCP’s avant-garde instrumental beats have long been a driving force behind the worldwide scratch scene, with their chest-rattling Polyvox basslines, stripped down elemental funk, and infectious drum patterns providing the framework for battles, performances and friendly meet-ups since the first Zalooper dropped back in 2013.

The link between NMCP and Cut & Paste Records was established through the shared passion for cutting records to disc on mastering lathes, and cutting sounds up on turntables. Since then, we’ve toured and performed together in the UK, Germany, Belarus and their native Russia, constantly researching ways to develop the vinyl record as a musical performance tool.

Zarecord 1 and 2 brought raw attitude and fresh sound palettes with their skipless vocal samples, and re-imagined what a scratch record could offer by including full-length instrumentals instead of the more “traditional” sparse beat loops lifted from other records. With Zarecord 3, the concept is flipped once more with the NMCP crew delving into their archives and supplying original parts of some of their classic beats in a pioneering format.

Side A is jam-packed full of original skipless vocal samples, perfect for battling, collaborating with bands, Q&A improv sessions, and layed out in a way that lends itself to needle-dropping and creating new sentences from what’s there.

Side B is where things are taken to the next level. The first 9 tracks are drum beats in the skipless format, all ending on infinite lock-grooves. What makes this record special is that all of the lock-groove beats are in sync with each other, enabling the user to jump from one track to another without even using headphones. Following the beats is a selection of classic NMCP bass sounds, synth tones, instruments, and lock grooves. This title is has been specifically formatted to use for beat juggling, with each drum loop starting at the same cue point.

This record is dedicated to the memory of the artist who created the iconic imagery for the Zarecord series: 8D. The cover for Zarecord 3 was originally a painting by 8D, and we worked closely with him to adapt the piece into a record sleeve design carrying all the mystery and magic of the original. The Spot-Gloss finish makes the cover art jump right out and appears to change with the light.