An affiliate of Matthewdavid’s Leaving label who can more often be found operating under the name Ahnnu, Leland Jackson this week returned to his Cakedog alias to issue his third footwork-indebted outing under the moniker, Menace in the Phantom. Said to have been “inspired by the Battle Groundz of Chicago” and dedicated to the late footwork pioneer DJ Rashad, Jackson’s new 14-track outing melds the breakneck pace and sharp sample chops of footwork with his own slant on off-kliter beat production. Pulled from Menace in the Phantom, “They Was Sleepin” serves as one example of Cakedog’s hybrid approach as it spends its initial push placing sliding chords and—what sounds like—Nicki Minaj vocal samples atop familiar footwork rhythms, before transitioning to more pastiched territory in the song’s final minute, where looser samples and a flush of new percussion hits are introduced. Jackson’s latest outing as Cakedog is out now in cassette and digital form via Leaving/Stones Throw.

They Was Sleepin