From its roots in Jamaica's production studios to London's "sound systems," dub has become as much a descriptive musical term as a genre. To be "dub" is to pay attention to silence as well as sound, to have a spaciousness (and often spaciness) absent from other electronic or club-derived music.

Although only a year old, Tokyo-based Play has become one of the foremost labels for exploring dub's changing permutations. "Paper," the third installment in Play's trio of compilations, again highlights the label's ability to find dub in the most unexpected places.

The first half of the compilation is a case in point. The opening cut from Pressure Drop has a decidedly traditional, laid-back vibe that seems straight out of a Kingston dance hall. The following tracks segue seamlessly into each other despite the very different musical roots of each artist. Howie B is a trip-hop producer best known for working with Bjork and U2; Susumu Yokota is one of Japan's reigning house maestros; and Play artists Quiro Pro and Spiritjack explore dub from the techno perspective.

After such chilled vibes, Takagi Kan's cracked beats on " Zig Zag," come as a relief. Kan, though primarily a hip-hop producer and MC, manifested a decidedly dubby tendency on his late-'80s "Balinese" rap record "Artman." That was recorded with a gamelan orchestra in Bali, but "Zig Zag" is another thing entirely: a strange, spacy mix of '50s electronica and jazz piano and booming, tribal rhythms punctuated with Art Blakey-style drumming.

The other real surprise on the album is Tid Thawin's cut, which qualifies more as experimental music (albeit with a beat) than anything to be heard in a club.

With the completion of the compilation series, Play's first releases, the label's next challenge will be promoting its artists' work separately, initially via a series of 12" singles.

One of the strengths of Play's artists is that, unlike other electronica- or club-oriented musicians, they really can play -- and do at the label's monthly event at Blue. Next month's Euphonic event with Detroit techno legend Stacy Pullen will feature the full Play slate.