Moritz Von Oswald & Mark Emestus: Main Street Records 1993 - 1999

Round Two - New Day (Dub) 1994

Round Two are Mark Emestus and Moritz Von Oswald who were also the legendary Basic Channel as well as Cyrus, Quadrant, Maurizio and Rhythm & Sound. While I have records and cds by all of those aforementioned groups I'm not really au fait with this moniker. I'm glad I looked into it today.

Round Three - Acting Crazy (Instrumental) 1995

Unmistakable Basic Channel-y sounds. 

Round Four - Found A Way 1998

Pure dub-tech gold! How do they do this trick? It almost dissipates into nothing right before your very ears and yet it still holds a rhythm albeit a rather mirage-like one. 

Round Five - Na Fe Throw Version 1999

Thick vibe man. I just noticed people arguing in the comments whether this should be played at 33 or 45. So I'm guessing all these side Bs are like all Basic Channel 12"ers which you can play at either speed depending on your mood.

THE DARKSIDE OF RAVE II

Mega City 2 - Dark Child (1993)

From a 1992 dubplate that was eventually released commercially a year later on the Demon By Daylight EP.  A haunting girls choir sing hymn-like melodies, occult-y percussion, dialogue from Children Of The Corn, backwards beats, a Japanese flute, rave riffs, needle scratches and rattling breaks make this one spellbinding journey into darkness.

Jim Polo - Voyager (1993)

Insidious chopped divas, record scratching, brittle infected beat science, eerie stretched ring modulators, horror dialogue and pitch-shifted bells all blend into this darkness. Further dark points are added as Voyager was issued on Dark Horse Records, an imprint run by Jimi & his 2 Sinister bandmate Neil Vass. Dark Horse started in 1993, released just 7 records and by 1994 the label was done and dusted. 

The Invisible Man - The End...(Drug Induced Psychosis Mix) (1993)

An uneasy vibe is followed by sinister tones then whooshes of darkness while the riddim fades in as the creaky gloom continues, further tension is added with Goblin-esque horror soundtrack soundz, at 3.09 a wobbly hoover drone blasts in, then we're informed it's the beginning of the end as we head into oblivion. 

D.O.P.E. - When I Was Young (1993)

This starts out of the gate with Amen breaks, then a sub bass drop at 0.13. Just as you're thinking this is gonna be a nice lil' toe tapper the creepiness starts to take over and before long you are enveloped in exquisite darkness. That malignant pitch-shifted Supertramp Logical Song sample is so sneakily inserted into the track that you barely even notice it's there until the tune is over and it has seeped into your brain.

Rufige Kru - Manslaughter (Part 1 Runners Edge) (1993)

Goldie is probably the only jungle celebrity on the planet but don't expect this tune to conform to any kind of commercial or dancefloor standards. This is twisted abstract dark ambient jungle except it's knackered and the malfunctioning beat just won't get up off the floor to get you on the floor. This is impeccable sound design for song blueprints for the future. The time for Manslaughter (Part 1 Runners Edge) still has not yet arrived and possibly never will. This is beyond! 

ANDY C

Double Vision - Easy Does It (1993)

Double Vision is an Andy C alias. Easy Does it is a surge that goes so hard(core) it totally rocks da house! 

Desired State - Beyond Bass (1993)

Desired State is Andy C & Ant Miles from Concept 2, Elevation & Higher Sense. The vocal hook here is a sample from Humanoid's Cry Baby which is turned into an urgent skittering blur. Add Amen breaks that smash their way through the dark atmosphere and blissful ambience to create quite a buzzin' tune.  

Andy C - Bass Constructor (1993)

We get mental chopped up hardcore chipmunk vocals amongst the insane drum choppage, whooshing keys, atmospheric bleeps and a classic bass drop at 0.58. Dark, intense and sinister. Bass! 

Andy C - Something New Part 1 (1993)

Includes babbling speedy chipmunks, hands in the air ambience, racing rave riffage, delirious backwards drumz and a deep bubbling bass drop at 1.25. Something New is a stampede in one hell of a rush.

Desired State - Killer Beat (1993)

Killer Beat starts out with ominous bells, disorienting synth smears then vocal snatches rush by in a blur as a deep wobbling bass enters amongst all sorts of frantic alarming sounds to rattle your brain.   

Randall & Andy C - Sound Control (1994)

An Amen smasher with mucho time-stretched and frantic choppage along with sirens, bleeps and horror soundtrack vibez. 

Randall & Andy C - Feel It (1994)

Sometimes hardcore jungle tunes can resemble arty audio collage music. Amidst rave sirens, crazy hardcore breaks and deep dub bass we get a slew of vocal snippets featuring jungalist and movie dialogue. As the comments say this wasn't played out very often but it's a booming track to lose your mind to. Bubblin psycho-delic RAMology.

Origin Unknown - Valley Of The Shadows (1993)

Now let's finish with the Andy C track that everyone knows because it's probably the most unforgettable jungle tune ever and definitely one of the best. This particular Valley Of The Shadows yt clip has been watched over 1.4 million times. Andy C is joined in Origin Unknown by his RAM Records co-founder Ant Miles. This Darkside Jungle masterpiece never gets old. It was whipped up in just four hours with most of the musical elements coming from a sample cd given away with the February 1993 issue of Future Music magazine. Apollo 11's 1969 lunar module landing countdown from NASA's Jack King provides the "31 seconds" dialogue snippet. The haunting "Felt that I was in a long dark tunnel" dialogue sample comes from a BBC documentary about near death experiences. The delightfully eerie atmosphere created here makes this one of the most memorable jungle tunes of all time. Perfection. 

Moving Shadow: The History of Jungle 1990-95

This mix is all killer no filler. These are the biggest tunes from 1990 to 1995 on the MOVING SHADOW label. I couldn't think of a better introduction to this mighty label. It covers hardcore turning into darkside turning into jungle. One glorious game-changing masterpiece after another. Uh...the vibe! If you are hearing any of these trax for the first time you are a lucky duck and in for a treat. I gotta say 30 years later it's still a joy to hear these fresher than ever cuts. Omni Trio and Foul Play are still giving me the goose bumps, sending me back to the euphoric future 90s.  

Hardcore!

 

Jungle! 

Check out the sheer quality in this playlist.

1 Blame– Music Takes You (2 Bad Mice Remix)Remix – 2 Bad Mice 

2 2 Bad Mice – Waremouse 

3 Hyper On Experience – The Frightner 

4 Kaotic Chemistry – Spacecakes 

5 2 Bad Mice – Mass Confusion 6 Hyper On Experience – Lords Of The Null-Lines (Foul Play Remix) Remix – Foul Play 

7 Foul Play – Open Your Mind 

8 Omni Trio –Feel Good (Remix) 

9 Foul Play – The Finest 

10 Omni Trio – Renegade Snares (Foul Play Remix) Remix – Foul Play 

11 Cloud Nine* – You Got Me Burnin 

12 DJ Trax – Hightime 

13 JMJ & Richie – Case Closed 14 Deep Blue – The Helicopter Tune 15 Omni Trio – Thru The Vibe 16 Renegade – Terrorist 17 Cloud Nine* – The Pedge 18 E-Z Rollers – Believe

19 Blame & Justice – Anthemia 

20 Omni Trio - Living For The Future 21 DJ Pulse – So Fine (Remix) 22 Essence Of Aura – Northern Lights

23 Higher Sense – Cold Fresh Air
24 Foul Play – Being With You 

25 Dead Dred – Dred Bass

Cold Fresh Air was the only track I couldn't i-d although it's familiar. Higher Sense are Ant Miles & David Thomas. Ant Miles was also in Jungle legends Origin Unknown and Desired State. It's a good day if I discover a cracking jungle tune from 28 years ago. I love that wasted vibe on the time-stretched vocal bit. 

*The remix of Cold Fresh Air was released by Moving Shadow but this original was on Ant's own label Liftin' Spirit. Which in turn was a sub label of RAM Records which was co-owned by Ant & another jungle luminary Andy C. Phew!...got it?

4HERO

 

4HERO - Make Yah See Spiders On The Wall (1991)

A paranoid Cabaret Voltaire-esque electronic frequency kicks this off and the darkness continues despite the twinkly xylophone motifs throughout. The bass drop at 0.34 is massive, fucking heavy and enthralling. The "You Should Do Some Voodoo" sample is a catchy but creepy nursery rhyme. The atmospheric horror soundtrack synths and menacing groans all add to this exquisite nightmare of a tune. Hearing this on the dancefloor under the influence of ecstasy could have sent you on a delirious downward spiral.  Nobody ever says this is one of the best tunes of the 90s but Make Yah See Spiders On The Wall IS definitely one of the best tunes of the 90s!

4HERO - Cookin UP Yah Brain (1992)

The beat science on this is magic. The drum choppage is all backwards then forwards top which bedlamises your mind. These unfathomable rhythms are what became so exciting about JUNGLE the emerging genre here, although I guess this is really a hardcore classic. 

 

4HERO - Students OF The Future (1993)

Gloomy drones, apocalyptic dialogue, funky drumming veering off the rails, punishing icy cold synth stabs amongst a plethora of weird atmospheric samples from unknown sources make this one hell of an illusive tune. A brain melting darkside masterpiece. 

4HERO - Journey From The Light (1993)

Spiralling concussive synth and percussion, luscious strings, bleeps, chipmunk vocals, acid squelches like bubbling cauldrons, otherworldly contorted drummage, noisey jolts and soul divas wailing into the future bring this sonic jigsaw to life. 4HERO's innovative quantum leaps in a period of less than 2 years is astonishing. Marc Mac & Dego, 4HEROs masterminds, covered so much territory by pushing into new zones it's amazing that they also had an slew of aliases creating an abundance of great music too. 

 

4HERO - The Power (1993)

Amazing. Some of the sounds here are so abstract it's hard to tell what their original source was. Putting your finger on swirly synths, mentastic stabs, skittering beats and an array bleeps is one thing but what the hell are these other elements that make up the rest of The Power's sonic collage. This shit was so visionary. That I'm saying this 30 years later is a testament to 4HERO's inspiring innovation.

In the midst of a purple patch that really began in 1991 4HERO seemed to hit another creative pinnacle on 1993's JOURNEY FROM THE LIGHT EP. The duo's ingenuity smashed through into another dimension. In the context of today these tunes are overwhelming in their stature. The amount of good ideas, inventiveness and the fact these ideas coalesce crabwise into masterpieces is still fucking thrilling.

4HERO - The Element (High Noon) (1993)

Still just freakily exhilarating in 2022. Really strange. Odd musical structures. Undeniably accessible though.

They do a thing here that's like the opposite of time-stretching, where it feels they they've squished too much sonic information into a space where it doesn't quite fit because there's not enough time/room but it does end up fitting somehow. This outcome is something akin to jump-cut edits in Nouvelle Vague. That in turn creates a weird discombobulating affect - compressed/folding into itself/disappearing spiral staircase/dream logic sort of thing. Maybe Simon Reynolds or Kodwo Eshun had a word for it, I can't remember.

It's hard to believe that 4HERO were, if I remember correctly, pretty straight edge. These insanely bedazzled trax with elation & paranoia smeared all over them seem designed to take maximum affect whilst under the influence of psychoactive substances. You would think inside knowledge of ecstasy, acid, speed, marijuana & coke's mind altering properties would have to be a requirement to make such successful psychedelic music but....

 

4HERO - In The Shadow (Sundown) (1993)

All backwards drumz, psychedelic mentasm scratches and an esoteric sequence of brutal abstract sci-fi keys that just seem to hang in the murky air make this a disorientating excursion into darkness like no other in hardcore jungle. A necromantic black hole of a tune.

Marc Acardipane - The Most Famous Unknown Expansion Packs 6 & 7

Many more remastered classics here. Still the most modern music you'll here this year!

Born Slippy - Underworld

I don't care how middlebrow this is. It's still great! I get that it's happy hardcore for for the boozed up Loaded boys and gals but who gives a fuck?!!! Starts out of the gate in classic 90s ambient mode then into the rock singing which was a vestige of Underworld's past (Underneath The Radar 1988) as an attempted Welsh version of an Aussie Dance-Rock band. Then the happy hardcore beat kicks in and that's pretty ecstatic. Then the anthemic LAGER LAGER bit and by the end it's in like Luke Slater trance-y territory. Epic sonic journey. Es & a lager thanks. Yass!

DJ Zirk - 2 Thick + DJ Squeeky - Hog Killin'

Dj. Zirk feat. Tom Skeemask & Buck Shotz - 2 Thick (1993) 

This was the best 27 yearz ago & even better now. This scene was so DIY & regional they didn't give a fuck about what the outside world wanted because it didn't want them. Artists just wanted to be just as good or better than the other local Memphis artists. There was no internet file sharing so things were kept pretty insular and local. Sure Memphis rappers had heard west coast, east coast and Texan shit but none of them apart from the southern contingent had heard the Memphis stuff. It was all about killing it with the beats, verses & flows. Playing at the peak of your creative powers. This is surely what made the scene so strong and unique.

2 Thick is DJ Zirk's seminal and most sampled track. Zirk and DJ Squeeky were good friends. I have always assumed Zirk learnt his production chops from Squeaky but I might be wrong. DJ Squeeky is credited with creating the original trap beats around 92/93. He was also using rappers such as Tom Skeemask, Criminal Manne, Gangsta Blac & Yo Lynch who did the "double time flows & triplets"* People incorrectly now call this, 20+ years after the fact, the Migos flow. Anyway Squeeky & Zirc, the Memphis beat masters, often used the same pool of rappers I guess like Zaytoven, Metro Boomin and Sonny Digital did in Atlanta in the 10s. 

Hog Killin' one of the classic DJ Squeeky productions from I guess 94 (?) featuring Lil Grove, Outlaw & Criminal Manne. It's not on discogs that I can see but hey it's right here on the youtubes!

* Lucas Foster. See his 2017 DJ Squeeky article here.

Kingpin Skinny Pimp - Good To Go (1994)

Before Position Normal & Ariel Pink there was zero budget hazy lo-fi 90s Memphis Hip-Hop! Kingpin Skinny Pimp was the godfather of the Gimisum Family, one of the city's best posse's during the 90s. Due to the Weirdest Hiphop Cover Art account on Instagram unearthing all the worst album cover art of regional 90s & 00s hip-hop, I've gone back to listening to 90 Memphis rap big time. I might be here for some time because I think this is just about the best music sub-genre ever. It just doesn't fit neatly anywhere putting it on the outside of everything in hip hop at the time. I guess some of this stuff got played in cars and clubs but it really feels like music for being wasted at home either on the couch or at a bbq. I'm still waiting for a book to be written on this amazing DIY cassette culture scene. It's not just the eerie recorded in their mum's toilet aesthetic that is appealing. An entire different creeping rapping flow was invented but who originated it is a contentious issue. Memphis rap themes were innovative too. They added horror, psychosis, suicidal depression, the occult, devil worshipping and apocalyptic paranoia to the criminal, pimpin & homicidal gangster game. There were also stacks of bad-ass lady rappers which was unlike most rap scenes at the time that I know of. The selling of the tapes was different too. They were often sold from stereo & car retailers. Details on the scene are still pretty sketchy with loads of wrong infos on Discogs and other sites.      

Anyway this Skinny Pimp tune is pretty out there with it's no fi psychedelic singing amongst the rapping & laid back beats. Then there's that crazy clunky sample intrusion at the 3.17 mark. What an insane trip. What year this was released is anybody's guess. It might be 1993 and it's possibly from 1995 but I'm gonna go for Memphis Rap's crowning year 1994.  

Mo Movies 37

BUT TELLY, MUSIC & POLITICS THOUGH...

I'm not in my usual rhythm for watching movies for some reason. Since my last movie post I've watched a hell of a lot of telly & listened to loads of music though. This includes the entire 80 episodes of Schitt's Creek plus the debut seasons of Ratched and The Queen's Gambit as well as seasons 3 & 4 of The Crown. These tv shows are all highly recommended but you know that already.

Then there is the politics of the authoritarian far left that are insidiously usurping fun, reason, liberty, civilised discourse and freedom of speech. They are disguised as people doing good by using slogans (& co-opting causes) that you agree with but when you look at the fine print of what they are doing and what they want, it's usually the opposite of your core values. Keeping track of Orwellian 2020 is absolutely concerning and consuming me. It's frightening. I think because this ideological revolution doesn't look the same as past revolutions ie. people revolting in the streets, rebels in the hills, military overthrowing Governments etc. but is coming swiftly through institutions (big tech, media, retail giants, schools, universities, corporations, probably the HR department for whoever you work for) people are not taking it seriously, if they know it's happening at all. Just have a quick look at The BBC, The Guardian, Oxford University, Google, Scottish Parliament, Chicago University, Patreon, The New York Times and you will soon realise these people are not following what regular rational working people think and value. They are espousing absolute nonsense while discrediting common sense à la Foucault. You must bow down to their zealous illiberal ideology or you will not get paid or get to do your PHD & ultimately you will not get to have a differing viewpoint. Sorry but this is REAL and it's happening and it's alarming!

Also Ive been listening to a lot of music instead of being in the mood for late night movies. Disco, Funk, Spiritual-Jazz, Funky Lebanese Pop, Gospel-Disco, Cumbia, 80s African Boogie, Latin/Tropical Disco, New Wave Funk, Sudanese Jazz, 80s South African Funky-R&B-Disco-Pop, Somalian Disco, Japanese Soul-Funk-Disco-Boogie, 70s Soundz of The French Caribbean and more. Listening to a lot of records from labels such as Habibi Funk, Ostinato, Analog Africa, BGP International, We Want Sounds & Cultures Of Soul. Then there's my dark side where 80s Industrial and Scandinavian 80s/ early 90s Black Metal are all I want to hear. Prince also rules as usual: Controversy, 1999 & Originals now being the platters du jour.        

Anyway telly though...Ratched was my big surprise this year. I didn't even wanna watch it but Emma kept putting it on. By episode four I was well and truly hooked. The direction, cinematography, period detail, colours and plot were all gloriously over the top. Sometimes it felt like Hitchcock, Kubrick and Paul Thomas Anderson were directing this cinematic telly extravaganza all at once! The director/show runners were definitely channelling their spirit. There was not one weak link in the astounding ensemble cast. I find it hard to comprehend a lot of people giving it a lukewarm response. Then again who cares? I fucking loved it so that's all that really matters! I didn't realise episode 8 was the final one so I was so disappointed to be whipped up into this delirious excitement to then not know when or if ever there will be another episode. I did see somewhere that there is going to be another season. 

I've now reassessed season three of The Crown. I now believe it to be nine mini-drama film masterpieces and one very good one. Getting over the casting choices for me was the biggest hurdle. In the first two seasons I only knew John Lithgow and he was so ensconced into the character of Winston Churchill I couldn't recognise him anyway. 

Season 4 of The Crown is also some of the highest quality telly ever made. The thing is I really didn't know these stories until Lady Di & Maggie Thatcher turned up (I became a teenager in the 80s). Even then I only knew the headline but rarely the story behind it. So it's all fascinating to me. The makers of The Crown have finally become quite unforgiving and sometimes scathing of these characters we all know and hate (and many love). Whilst Charles had previously been quite sympathetically portrayed now his scoundrel is unveiled. Kudos must to go to the continuing outstanding portrayals of Philip, Charles, Margo & Anne by Tobias Menzies, Josh O'Conner, Helena Bonham Carter & Erin Doherty. There is however a new contender for most outstanding acting performance in The Crown and that goes to the surprise packet of the year Gillian Anderson as Margaret Thatcher. I've always found Scully to be a bit of a sleepy actor to the extent I thought she must have been addicted to Oxycontin whilst filming the excellent series The Fall (2013-2016). Anyway when she turned up here as The Iron Lady I almost fell out of my chair because I didn't know it was coming. I went from "Oh this is just sleepy Scully doing Maggie!" during the first episode to "That's Margaret Thatcher! I can no longer see Scully!" during the second. 

To people who have not been converted to the splendiferousness of The Crown I am recommending one episode. Fairytale is episode three of the fourth season and if it was a theatrical release it would sweep the Oscars and win eleven. Fairytale is a fairytale in the truest sense of the word ie. it's horrifying! This is the story of how fucked up everything was for Lady Diana at the palace and inside her own head before the wedding to Prince Charles. It's absolutely harrowing and brilliantly executed by all involved. I was a bit "whatever" on the portrayal of Diana by Emma Corrin but after watching several documentaries about Diana's life I'm getting that Corrin's depiction is actually pretty close to the enigmatic real life Diana.    

I've been listening to some movie podcasts and watching some movie you-tubers. I'll discuss the state of this often perplexing milieu in my next post. For now here are some lil' reviews of some movies I've recently watched. I know I've missed over 50% of the flicks I've watched but hey life gets in the way sometimes.  

JD's Revenge (1976)
For a blind buy this was a wicked and wild ride of the finest kind. In the 90s I became obsessed with 70s African American movies and particularly the tunes and soundtracks. I never heard anyone ever recommend JD's Revenge so I didn't bother checking it out until this recent blu-ray release. I mean if Arrow are releasing a movie it's like a 94% chance that it will be bloody good and I was not wrong. This is a blaxploitation flick with a difference. It fits into to the Blaxploitation-horror sub-genre and the sub-sub-genre of Blaxploitation-possession movies. First of all you get all the good stuff: The 70s threads, the cars, the vernacular, the youthfully fit beautiful bodies, the afrocentric interior design, the jazz-funk, the soul, the hair, the night clubs, the strip joints, the bars and the bloody violence. One of the best things that sets this movie apart from the pack is that it's set in New Orleans and not only that we get some amazing vision of what I assume is Tulane football Stadium, some spectacular fevered evangelism and flashbacks to 40s gangster shiiiite. Two couples go out for a night on Bourbon Street and are coaxed into a hypnotist show by a spruiker. Isaac (Glynn Turman) volunteers to be hypnotised which is a mistake that causes a crazy spiral of strange, disturbing, violent and confusing events. This ensemble cast (including Lou Gossett, Joan Pringle, James Watkins, Earl Billings etc.) are all in stellar form and the film craft is class sending this straight into my top Blaxploitation top 10 with the bullet. My favourite film discovery of 2020 so far!

Onibaba (1964) 
I knew nothing about Kaneto Shindō's cult classic of 60s Japanese horror going in and that was a good thing. So you can stop right here and go watch this film which I highly recommend. I guess to say an arty cult Japanese film is weird is a bit cliche and perhaps culturally off point but here it is definitely warranted. A film set in 7 or 8 foot high grass is probably unlike anything you've ever seen. Two women, a wife (Jitsuko Yoshimura) & her mother in law (Nobuku Otowa), are living in a hut amongst the giant grass surviving somehow through a brutal wartime famine. They are visited by Hatchi (Kei Satō) who reveals to the wife that her husband Kishi was killed after they both deserted the army. Sex, violence and horrific shenanigans ensue. For 1964 this is pretty racy stuff! Onibaba is one of my cinema (well telly) events of the year. The acting and highest calibre film-making coalesce into one of the best Japanese films period. This year I've seen a hell of lot of Japanese movies so that's saying something. Now I'm excitedly on the lookout for whatever else Kaneto Shindō directed.

Seconds (1966)

Terrific haunting sci-fi identity change story with a twist. Stars Rock Hudson directed by one of the all-time great film directors John Frankenheimer. What more do you need?

Life Is Sweet (1990)

I haven't revisited 90s Mike Leigh films, well, since the 90s. I've watched his early BBC Plays Of The Day Abigail's Party (1977) & Nuts In May (1976) several times this century. They remain brilliant & hilarious, absolute classics. When I put this blu-ray on however I thought geez this hasn't aged well at all. It took until about a third of the way in for me to start to engage and stop thinking about switching it off. Women with mental illness and shit men doing shit things is the order of the day here. Worth watching for the cast although Jane Horrocks really over acts her character Nicola letting down the rest of the amazing ensemble cast of Claire Skinner, Jim Broadbent, Alison Steadman, Timothy Spall, David Thewlis, Stephen Rea etc. This is hardly my favourite Mike Leigh movie but it's another stellar performance from Alison Steadman so...

Threads (1984)

Devastatingly realistic portrayal of WW3 and the following nuclear winter. The tone from Barry Hines (Kes 1969) & Mick Jackson might be pitch black but you cannot look away. This is film-making at its most compelling. If you thought last year's Chernobyl was a barrel of monkeys, your eyeballs ain't seen nothing yet. A MASTERPIECE! 

Titanic (1997)
This was a first time watch for me as I would have thought I was way too cool for overhyped hollywood blockbusters back in the day. An unsinkable ship hits an iceberg then sinks. Aw no! Chuck in a love story involving Leo DiCaprio & Kate Winslet's boobs. Also never trust Billy Zane on a boat. It's pretty spectacular particularly the second half when the ship finally hits the iceberg. James Cameron could have dropped the entirely unnecessary device of the story being told by Rose, a survivor, to a bunch of current day Titanic investigators and it would have been a great film instead of "Pretty good...a bit of a slog though".

Anti-Christ (2009)

This contains the most fucked up scene I've ever seen in a film ever and I've seen a few. Arty psycho-sexual Euro horror of the highest calibre. Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg are outstanding as the two stars of this utterly compelling Lars von Trier shocker. Enter at own risk.

More UK Garridge IV

Antonio - Hyperfunk (Steve Gurley Mix)
Magical. You can never go wrong with Steve Gurley at the controls.



24 Hour Experience - Together
Such a bad band name. That second keyboard line that comes in at 1.18 is strange. It would usually be an octave or two lower and be the bassline but it feels too high to be the bass giving this tune a light headed off kilter quality.



Sunship - Cheque One-Two 
Wicked man. Cheque One-Two is pretty in yer face innit? Those eastern keys are very odd for speed garage, aren't they? Classic 1998 UKG beat though. I could totally imagine this tune getting a remix in the wobble era if indeed it didn't.

More UK Garridge Gold

G.O.D. - Watch Ya Bass Bins (1997)
Another tuuuuune from 97 I didn't know until this week! I'm a sucker for time-stretching and reggae/ragga samples. Oh and then there's that fucking bass. Watch Ya Bass Bins!



Box Clever - Treat Me Right (1998)
This one might not seem immediate but just hang on, it's insidious and by the end of the track it will be under your skin. This is meticulous, mesmerizing and magnificent. Love that organ sample.



Zak Toms - Bring Me Down (1998)
Another state of the art speed garage nugget that I don't recall. Worth it for the bass drop at 1 minute 29 alone. Bring Me Down is another lovely, slinky and hypnotic production.

On the UK Garridge Tip

& A Bit Of Ye Olde Jungle

Found this choice UK garage mix today. It treads that fine line between classy, trashy, rootsy and poppy. The rhythms and sonic innovations are undeniable though. It's got classic faves Find The Path, It's a London Thing, RIP Groove etc. Maybe I haven't heard or don't remember half of these tunes which is refreshing. There are some revelations here like Don't Stop (Deeper Mix) from Ruff Driverz, Spend The Night (H-Mans Groove Dub) by Danny J Lewis and Jhelisa's very commercial Friendly Pressure (Midnight Mix), which I can only assume was a big hit in the UK. I think this gear stays really fresh because I wasn't into the scene at the time and only came to appreciate the music much later. It's not like 'ardcore/darkside/jungle where I've heard, you know, Mr Kirk's Nightmare, Bombscare, Finest Illusion, Terminator, Here Come The Drumz, Renegade Snares et al. 1000 times. Anyway this was a really spot on mix until the final three tunes which didn't seem to fit, starting with that Tori Amos track which was more like funky house. So I'd fade out the mix at around the 1 hour 12 minute mark.

Double 99's speed garridge gem RIP Groove from 1997 led me to the above mix. I'm pretty sure this is the original 6 min track.

DJ Gunshot's 1994 jungle tune Wheel 'N' Deal was sampled on RIP Groove was it not?

Wheel 'N' Deal put me in mind of this all time classic jungle Amen smasher Drum N' Bass Wise from Remarc. Wow this still sounds fucking remarkable (pun intended) and current and future... It's from bloody 1994. That's ages ago! I don't even wanna say the amount of years that is. Is 94 when the future died?

This whole sonic journey started here with Grant Nelson's classic Step 2 Me because this tune was posted at Energy Flash several hours ago.

*Some previous posts on UK Garridge:
Proto Dubstep, Speed Garage & Recreations.
UK Garridge With Simon Reynolds.
UK Garridge 101 Part 1.
UK Garridge 101 Part 2.
Uk Garridge 101 Part 3.

Jungle Mix

Pearsall from sonicrampage never lets you down with his jungle mixes. This one's called Rolled In The Jungle (Summer Ready Jungle Mix) All Killer No Filler. Just in time for a beautiful & unseasonably warm day in the North-West of Victoria down here in the Antipodes. Loving it...ooh that segue from DJ Krust's Poison to Origin Unknown's Mission Control, nice. Many a mid 90s legend here ie. Goldie, Foul Play, Babylon Timewarp, Tom & Jerry, Dillinja, Run Tings, Roni Size etc. Pearsall presents an Amen-free zone full of rugged soul, ambient drum'n'bass and tough breaks. He's mixing it up with some big tunes and a sprinkling of lesser known trax, all choice cuts. As the brief states Rolled In Sunshine is pretty much all rollers in that exquisite transitional zone before jungle splintered and either got too smooth, too harsh or too boring.

Big ups to Pearsall!

A sweet spot for me is when the jungle gets dubby and Poison certainly does that with a choice bit of sampled(?) reggae.  

The unmistakable sounds of Origin Unknown. Mission Control is pretty minimal and dubby too. A sumptuous trip into a long dark tunnel, know what I mean? 

90s Acardipane Again

Primitive GLOOM/DOOM-CORE at its finest. Gabber stripped down to an elemental level that's almost subtle but it's not though if you you know what I mean. Sometimes I think this is just the best sound ever created, why would you need anything else?

Marc Acardipane is so in the zone here. I reckon he could have stayed there for another half an hour at least. I guess this is like an acid counterpart to the first tune.

Noisy gabber shit. An unhinged trip!

Maximal noise overload. An incredible concussive racket that goes fucking mental but somehow doesn't become a mess. It is a perfect cacophony till the end. How the hell does he do that? Acardipane at the peak of his powers. Surely one of the finest musical (?) moments from the 90s.

These 4 tunes are all by Marc Acardipane and are taken from the compilation PHUTURE released on PCP in 1994. When his day of recognition is coming I don't know but it's absurd that it hasn't. He was one of THE two or three great sonic technicians of the 90s.

Gabba

I was thinking the other day 'We've been waiting for some kind of gabber recommencement since 2016 flipped into 2017 but nothing's happened.' I guess the scene has probably continued on in the same way that drum'n'bass still exists. What I really mean is that gabber/doomcore/gloomcore godfather and legend Marc Arcardipane hasn't resurfaced as far as I can tell (not that I've really looked). In the 90s Arardipane had this logo on many of his releases See You In 2017. 

Here are some dudes (below) with the historical knowledge of gabber giving it a retro-gabba crack (Via Energy Flash).



I wish this lecture (above) was real and was going to continue on for another 45 minutes. The track by DJ Balli & Giacomo Bella ChickenFIAT that was posted at Energy Flash is fun but hardly revelatory, hey what is these days?



God I love that thick squally synth sound! Rotterdam Terror Corps were mentioned in that above trailer.



Hardcore



70s rock (Queen samples, traces of Sabbath riffage in the synth) influences in 90s Hardcore!





A Cold Rush. Atmos-Fear was recorded several years earlier than the other above tunes. This is Marc Arcardipane & Marc Arcardipane ie. he is The Mover & The Rave Creator. This is the true soundtrack for 2017.

It's 2017?
Where are you Marc?

2017 with Marc Acardipane

WE HAVE ARRIVED IN THE PHUTURE

These first two are on the same record from 1990!!!

From 1992 this is a one sided LP.

A classic from 96. A pretty ominous title right there and a rather fitting sound for now doncha' think?

Of course these are all Marc Acardipane aliases and that was an alias for Mark Trauner. Marc was THE German producer of hardcore techno/gabba/gloomcore from 1989 onwards, more like a genre unto himself! Acardipane must have had over 100 pseudonyms and trying to collect his full back catalogue must be a futile task but it would be kind of heroic if you had them all. He had a big thing about 2017. I'm not really sure what it was, can't remember if I ever knew, but perhaps all will be revealed this year. On his record sleeves he kept saying See You In 2017. Surely he's gonna make a comeback and be as big as Beyonce....well it's a nice thought anyway. Perhaps It'll just be the end of the world as we know it and Acardipane will feel fine.

Loveless - My Bloody Valentine

Tim's Ultra Rough Guide To Rock - Part VI

After my previous post on Debbie Googe I thought I'd put up this old bit I wrote on on Loveless.

MY BLOODY VALENTINE - LOVELESS [1991]

Really do I need to spill another word onto a page about the merits of this LP? This recording is one of the most pillaged albums in rock’s history. The Jesus & Mary Chain laid down the blueprint via Phil Spector, The Beach Boys, The Velvet Underground, The Ramones, Dr. Mix & The Remix, Aeroplane Runways and more. Dinosaur Jr., Husker Du and Sonic Youth added the extra flavour and My Bloody Valentine made noise rock at its most beautiful, blurry, melodic, disorientating and come on I have to say it, BLISSED OUT (er..thanks Mr Reynolds). Kevin Shields provided his considerably unique guitar talents along with Belinda Butcher. They together did their extraordinary girl/boy vocal thing. The rhythm section was none too shabby either with the aforementioned Deb Googe on her heavy, dubby and sometimes pummelling bass. Colm O'Ciosoig provided the drums as well as occasional sampling/production/engineering duties. It all began to come together in 1988 with the release of the You Made Me Realise EP and Feed Me With Your Kiss followed by the brilliant LP Isn’t Anything. My Bloody Valentine were on an incredible roll that turned into an avalanche with 1990’s Glider EP & 1991’s Tremolo EP followed by Loveless! Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation may have taken rock to its furthest reaches but Loveless took it beyond the universe and even into un-rock regions ie. ambient and ultra vague dance-rock. This was future rock’s cherry on top. We thought ongoing sonic exploration of rock was to continue but this was it. Loveless has now become an almost melancholy sonic document, like modernist Russian architecture that’s now in ruins, because it was never bettered. Don’t let that get you down though because this is a hell of a peak for rock’s innovation to go out on. Here come the cliches. Loveless was hazy sweet languidity with a noisy and chaotic undercurrent played with frenzied and laconic enthusiasm. Like the band’s name suggested a conundrum was at work here where apathy and hysteria were used to describe the same song. Did I say deliriously indolent? No? Well I have now. What about listless exhilaration? One tends to forget this record also fucking rocked as well as swimming in oceans of intoxicating euphoria, sometimes all at once. Oh yeah, Loveless is also pop music at its finest. Ecstatic aural pleasure at its Zenith.

Someone once commented 'Why didn't they do a whole side of the sort of stuff like Touched and the in between track hazy ambient gear?' That would have been great wouldn't it?

Best opening tune to an LP ever?

That's a good game: Best opening songs to albums. Simon should rally everyone for that can of worms.

* My original review taken from the HC Website. 

Royal Trux

There's a good 2 hour special here on Royal Trux, who were the most consistently great rock group of the 90s. This is a career retrospective of the band and Jennifer Herrema is interviewed throughout by Ajay(?).

Herrema has now got her own dublab show named after an old Royal Trux tune The Banana Question. There are 2 episodes so far and it's an amateurishly ramshackle affair with 80s hip-hop, metal, disco, classic rock etc. all sort of shabbily dub mixed. Quite entertaining. I imagine pro DJs will hate it.

Take the 90s Avant-Rock challenge here with Twin Infinitives. Hey, it took me a couple of years to realise this was a mental scuzzy masterpiece.

They started to get a bit more accessible after Twin Infinitives. Driving In That Car was a few years later from the great 1993 Cats & Dogs LP.

Morphic Resident is reaching almost FM worthy commerciality but they're still them. I'm pretty sure the story goes that the band handed over these tapes to Greg Archilla and he just did what he wanted with the mix. The band liked it and 1997's Sweet Sixteen was the result, another classic.

Another gem from Sweet Sixteen.

Massive Bass

That Safe From Harm bass is sampled from a Billy Cobham tune Stratus. It's only part Cobham's track where it comes in at the 3.05 mark but Massive Attack make it their whole tune here. It's like a warm blanket which befits the title of the song nicely!