Still Jammin' On The Moon(s)

My shortlist for yesterday's Justin Robertson mixtape ran to 26 tracks, enough for two 86-minute Dubhed selections, so why keep you waiting?

More of an even split between the 20th and 21st centuries, there are some classic remixes of Finitribe and Stereo MC's, a rare B-side from Justin's late 90s alias Gentleman Thief, a deep cut from Lionrock's hugely underrated second album, plenty from The Deadstock 33s and collaborations with Dot Allison, Michael Rother, Nadine Sutherland, Ernie Ranglin and Brix Smith.

More nourishing than a Sunday roast, well, spiritually at least... enjoy the feast!

1) Arikanto (Justin Robertson Remix): DJ Shine (2011)

2) Forevergreen (Forevermost Excellent Mix By Justin Robertson, Mr. Samples & Phunky Torso): Finitribe (1992)

3) I'm In Love... (Justin Robertson's Deadstock 33s Remix) (Cover of The Passions): Andy Bell ft. Dot Allison & Michael Rother (2025)

4) Who Are You? (Sleuth Mix By Justin Robertson & Richard Hector-Jones): Larceny (1995)

5) The Liquidator: Lionrock 1997)

6) Spain (The Deadstock 33's Edit By Justin Robertson): The Stranglers (2010)

7) Creation (Justin Robertson Instrumental): Stereo MC's (1993)

8) At Peace In The Barber's Chair: Gentleman Thief (1999)

9) Brix Goes Tubular (Extended Version): Justin Robertson's Deadstock 33s & Brix Smith (2022)

10) Ramvong (Justin Robertson Deadstock 33's Remix): Richard Rossa (2014)

11) Seventeen (Justin Robertson Mix): Ladytron (2009)

12) Lost In Space (Lionrock Galactic Boogie Mix By Justin Robertson) (Cover of John Williams): Apollo 440 (1998)

13) Save Me (Album Version By Justin Robertson): Two Culture Clash ft. Nadine Sutherland & Ernie Ranglin (2004) 

1992: Forevergreen (The Justin Robertson Mixes) EP: 2

1993: Creation EP: 7

1995: Who Are You? EP: 4

1997: City Delirious: 5

1998: Lost In Space EP: 12

1999: We Generate Love EP: 8

2004: Two Culture Clash: 13

2009: Light & Magic: Remixed & Rare: 11

2010: Spain EP: 6

2011: Arikanto EP: 1

2014: Ramvong EP: 10

2022: Brix Goes Tubular EP: 9

2025: I'm In Love... EP: 3

Jammin' On The Moon(s) Vol. 2 (1:25:41) (GD) (M)

If you've still got room for desert, please indulge yourself with this trio of JR selections from the Dubhed archives:

 

Truth In The Palm Of Her Hands (Lionrock singles and remixes 1992-1997)

Dip Your Hip (JR/Deadstock 33s tracks and remixes, 2001-2023)

Deadstock Holiday (JR remixes 1990-2023)

Decadance I: 1991

Side 2 of a made up mixtape, focusing on the Nineties. Today we arrive in 1991. 

Guitars are beginning to creep back into the mix, but today's selection is still very much about getting on to the dancefloor, whether of the club or indie variety.

Looking at the best-selling UK singles of 1991, there was clearly a collective madness permeating society as far as record buying was concerned. How else do you explain Bryan Adams spending four effing months at #1? Or The Simpsons also hitting the top spot and having the 5th best seller of the year? Is there any rational explanation for the existence of Color Me Badd?!!

I spent a large part of 1991 in Australia, whose singles charts were arguably just as bad, though I was at least spared The Stonk by comedians Hale & Pace. 

Continuing with the info on each single's peak (UK) chart placing and date throws up some interesting observations. As with yesterday's selection, 1991's dozen songs include eight UK Top 40 hits and four that, well, weren't.

Just the one #1 this time and that a cheeky piggy back on a re-release of Should I Stay Or Should I Go by The Clash thanks to a jeans TV advert. Mick Jones had regrouped and relaunched Big Audio Dynamite II the previous year and included a reworked and renamed song from their debut album. Change Of Atmosphere became Rush and it gave Mick another hit single...though it made little if no difference to the chart fortunes of follow up album The Globe.

The selection opens with Intastella, a band I loved but for whom commercial success seemed elusive. Century, despite a 12" remix from Adamski, peaked at #70 and proved to be the second highest charting single of their career in the UK. A shame, as they had some cracking tunes, including this one.

Today's MAW (Mandatory Andrew Weatherall, not to be confused with Masters At Work, although he's equally deserving of the label) is a monumental remix of 101 by Finitribe. Even the 3:20 single edit is a masterclass, to the extent that this was the album version selected for An Unexpected Groovy Treat the following year. 

Released in July 1991, as far as I can tell 101 managed to scrape to #171 by the end of August and that was it's peak. As I said above,  clearly a collective madness permeating society as far as record buying was concerned.

Apart from the aforementioned Big Audio Dynamite II stowaway, the only other song from 1991's Top 20 best sellers is Sunshine On A Rainy Day by Zoë. Quite an achievement given that the original 1990 version failed to make the same impression. All I will say is that returning to the UK and seeing the leather trousered, barefoot Zoë throwing all manner of shapes on Top Of The Pops made a lasting impression on me.

An unexpected delight whilst I was on the other side of the world was hearing Bristol-born boy done good Gary Clail cracking the Top 10 with Human Nature. I was already a fan of his work with Adrian Sherwood and On-U Sound System, but the additional boost of an in-vogue remix by Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne made all the difference. Hearing Gary's Bristolian burr ("put their hands in their pockets") alongside the dulcet tones of the legendary Alan Pillay still makes me smile.

Poor If? though, they really did try. They had some great tunes, seemingly tapped into the zeitgeist with their lyrical subjects and had impeccable taste in remixers, including Leftfield and Justin Robertson. Sadly, people just didn't buy any of their records. They had three goes with Saturday's Angels between 1991 and 1992, the 2nd being the best, with a peak of #83. This radio-friendly remix by The Grid aka Dave Ball and Richard Norris didn't in fact feature on any of the three attempts, instead tucked away as a B-side on another undeservedly flop single from 1991, Open Up Your Head.

Unfinished Sympathy was Massive Attack's first big hit...except it wasn't. Following a frankly bizarre edict regarding band names that might be triggering due to the ongoing Gulf War, the BBC banned a load of songs during this period.

The list apparently included Atomic (Blondie), In The Army Now (Status Quo), I'm On Fire (Bruce Springsteen), State Of Independence (Donna Summer), Walk Like An Egyptian (Bangles) and When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going (Billy Ocean).

The record label dodged this potential issue by renaming Massive Attack as Massive for this one single, but it seemed to work, although I sure that there were some music lovers out there devastated this this wasn't in fact a belated follow up by Massivo ft. Tracy.

Intastella weren't the only young upstarts, however. Saint Etienne, Flowered Up and The Mock Turtles were all establishing themselves, though arguably I should have made some room here for James or Manic Street Preachers. 

 

However, there was another band who showed some early promise, by the name of Blur. I wonder what became of them?

Be here next Saturday for some 1992 action. I'll be as surprised as you to find out what makes the final twelve.

1) Century (7" Version By Chris Nagle & Mike 'Spike' Drake): Intastella
2) 101 (Sonic Shuffle Edit By Andrew Weatherall & Hugo Nicolson): Finitribe
3) Nothing Can Stop Us (Album Version): Saint Etienne
4) Sunshine On A Rainy Day (7" Radio Mix 1991 By Youth & Mark 'Spike' Stent): Zoë
5) Do What You Feel (Dum Dum Vocal Edit By Dave Lee): Joey Negro ft. Debbie French

6) Human Nature (On The Mix Edit By Paul Oakenfold & Steve Osborne): Gary Clail / On-U Sound System ft. Alan Pillay

7) Saturday's Angels (Elevator Heaven Mix By The Grid): If?

8) Unfinished Sympathy (Nellee Hooper 7" Mix): Massive Attack ft. Shara Nelson

9) Take It (Album Version): Flowered Up

10) Rush (Edit): Big Audio Dynamite II

11) Can You Dig It? (Extended Mix By Martin Coogan, Pete Smith & Karl Madert): The Mock Turtles

12) There's No Other Way (Album Version By Stephen Street): Blur

20th Jan 1991: Saturday's Angels EP (#83): 7

3rd Mar 1991: Should I Stay Or Should I Go EP (#1): 10

10th Mar 1991: Unfinished Sympathy EP (#13): 8

14th Apr 1991: Can You Dig It? EP (#18): 11

21st Apr 1991: Human Nature EP (#10): 6

12th May 1991: Foxbase Alpha (#54): 3

12th May 1991: A Life With Brian (#34): 9

12th May 1991: There's No Other Way (#8): 12

25th Aug 1991: 101 EP (#171): 2

8th Sep 1991: Sunshine On A Rainy Day EP (#4): 4

17th Nov 1991: Century EP (#70): 1

17th Nov 1991: Do What You Feel EP (#36): 5

Side Two (47:18) (GD) (M)

How Are You Feeling? It's A Beautiful Morning!

Keeping with yesterday's uplifting vibes, today's selection is a clutch of songs (mostly) from the early 1990s, packed into an open top car and taken on a remix road trip. Feel the sunshine.

Any such compilation and Andrew Weatherall is almost certain to be found. Here he, Jagz Kooner and Gary Burns pop up twice as Sabres Of Paradise. First up is their masterful collaboration with One Dove on Transient Truth, seven minutes of sonic sweetness underpinning Dot Allison's voice. 

Secondly, all double bass funk and squelchy synths, is Red Snapper's classic Hot Flush from 1995. The music couldn't be more different from One Dove, yet Andrew, Jagz and Gary lend both an emotional heft that just can't be described in words. Well, not be me, anyway. This track originally featured on the EP of the same name, collected the same year on the Reeled And Skinned compilation which is an essential introduction to Red Snapper.

Either side of these tracks are a couple of groovy numbers. In reverse order, Fortran 5 are rinsed good and proper by Alex Paterson and Kris 'Thrash' Weston of The Orb. I loved the original album version but The Herbal Supper Mix is a feast of heavy bass, SFX and samples ("one spliff a day keeps the evil away") with Shola Phillips' sweet vocals weaving through. 

Fluke serve up Groovy Feeling, the 1993 single offering half a dozen remixes all named after ice cream varieties. The version here retains the vocal licks and bubbling beats that characterise the Fluke sound.

They pop up again later in the selection with a sublime remix of Beautiful Morning by Sensation, one of my favourites of theirs. The original song was a lovely indie-pop number but Fluke transform it into an energising, irresistible uptempo anthem that has me involuntarily shouting "yeah!" along with singer Johnny Male pretty much every time. Which can be embarrassing if I'm wearing headphones in a public space.

Also feeling the groove are Finitribe, who were so impressed with Justin Robertson's remix of their single Ace Love Deuce that it was the definitive version used on 1992 album An Unexpected Groovy Treat. The additional treat is that the album version is a minute or so longer than the one found on the 12" and CD single. If you're a fan of Justin Robertson's work from the early 1990s, you will not be disappointed.

Underworld come in towards the end of this mix and in such style. I can't remember which came first but their remixes of Water From A Vine Leaf (included here) and Human Behaviour by Björk just blew me away when I first heard them. Twelve minutes of beautifully structured electronic music that was built for the dancefloor yet for me has always worked as songs in their own right, away from the club environment. In both cases, the addition of a unique female vocal is that little push over the edge. In this case, it's Beth Orton (though I think I can hear Karl Hyde in there somewhere too, deep in the mix) joining William Orbit on an epic journey.

Sticking with William Orbit and taking a slight step back into the last year of the 1980s with a mix that pointed to the future. Balearic beats before I had a clue what that even was. Les Negresses Vertes were a Parisian band that I'd seen pop up on TV (the last gasps of The Tube, I guess) but I didn't know much about. I got this remix of 1989 single Zobi La Mouche on a secondhand copy of Beat This! a compilation of dance label Rhythm King originally given away as a cover-mounted CD with Sky Magazine in 1990. William Orbit is joined by fellow Torch Song collaborator Rico Conning, all acoustic strums and rousing calls that scream 'party!' I feel like I've glugged a bottle of red wine and jumped up on the table to dance just listening to it...

 

1) Transient Truth (Album Version By One Dove & Sabres Of Paradise): One Dove (1993)

2) Groovy Feeling (Nutty Chip Cornet): Fluke (1993)

3) Hot Flush (Sabres Of Paradise Remix): Red Snapper (1995)

4) Groove (The Herbal Supper Mix By The Orb): Fortran 5 ft. Shola Phillips (1991)

5) Ace Love Deuce (Justin Robertson Mix) (Album Version): Finitribe (1992)

6) Beautiful Morning (Fluke's Magimix): Sensation (1993)

7) Water From A Vine Leaf (Underwater Mix Part 1) (Remix By Underworld): William Orbit ft. Beth Orton (1993)

8) Zobi La Mouche (The Fly) (Club Mix By William Orbit & Rico Conning): Les Negresses Vertes (1989)

 

1989: Zobi La Mouche EP: 8

1991: Groove EP: 4

1992: An Unexpected Groovy Treat: 5 

1993: Beautiful Morning EP / Welcome To The Future²: 6

1993: Groovy Feeling EP: 2

1993: Morning Dove White: 1 

1993: Water From A Vine Leaf EP: 7

1995: Hot Flush EP / Reeled And Skinned: 3

How Are You Feeling? It's A Beautiful Morning! (57:27) (KF) (Mega)

Concocting A Rhythm That You Could Get Lost In... (Again)

Side 2 of a mixtape, compiled 5th September 1993, rounding up some musical suspects from 1991 to 1992. A couple of Justin Robertson's finest early 90s remixes here, for Sly & Lovechild and Finitribe. New Atlantic's sole UK Top 20 hit, I Know, is included in it's definitive Love Decade remix, with a pitched up Candi Staton vocal sample giving the song its title. Leftfield and William Orbit were both hitting their stride as remixers du jour and deliver prime examples of why they were in such demand at the time. Youth contributes a pair of remixes, beefing up Frazier Chorus to great effect and obliterating The Psychedelic Furs' original vocals and instruments to the extent that, if this were a white label, you wouldn't have a clue it was them. The original mixtape featured the instrumental version of Espiritu's Francisca from the 12" single, which I haven't yet ripped, so I've swapped out for the equally good dub mix from the CD, pushing the C90 running time waaay into the red.

 

1) Spirit Of Destiny (Justin Robertson Mix): Sly & Lovechild (1992)

2) I Know (Love Decade Remix 12"): New Atlantic (1991)

3) Ace Love Deuce (Justin Robertson Mix) (Single Edit): Finitribe (1991)

4) Francisca (Dub Mix): Espiritu (1992)

5) Back To Front (The Rub It Vocal Mix By Leftfield): Adamski ft. Ricky Lyte (1992)

6) Walking On Air (Remix By Youth): Frazier Chorus (1991)

7) Treaty (Djulpan / Seven Sisters Mix By William Orbit): Yothu Yindi (1992)

8) Don't Be A Girl (Dancehall On Fire) (Remix By Youth): The Psychedelic Furs (1991)

Side Two (47:11) (Box) (Mega)

Side One here

Watching, Not Wanting

Side 2 of a mixtape, compiled 8th August 1998.

 

Some dirty, downtempo beats for you today, with a selection of tracks from the 1996-1998 period. Goodness knows how I managed to squeeze this onto a C90 cassette side, but...

Starting off with a superior demo of Blue Mug by GusGus, which subsequently appeared on their 1999 album This Is Normal and ending with a swampy remix of Massive Attack's Teardrop by Primal Scream, featuring the superlative vocals of Liz Fraser. In between, you get a couple of early 90s rappers - Justin Warfield and MC Tunes - in their respective new groups, One Inch Punch and Dust Junkys. 

 

Solex vs. The Hitmeister was one of my favourite albums of 1998 and Solex aka Elisabeth Esselink was a great live act, as was Laika, both of whom I saw at the time, to undeservedly modest audiences.

 

New Forms by Roni Size Reprazent was ubiquitous in 1998, yet more than lived up to the hype around it. The same can be said for When I Was Born For The 7th Time, Cornershop's 'surprise' hit on the back of a number 1 single with Brimful Of Asha.

 

I only have this one single by Rare and undoubtedly bought it for the Justin Robertson remix, not included here, but quite liked the other versions on the CD. As an added bonus for fact fans, Rare was a short-lived band from Derry, Northern Ireland, featuring none other than John O'Neill (credited as Seán Ó'Néill), formerly of The Undertones and That Petrol Emotion. The following year, Rare disbanded, The Undertones reformed without Feargal Sharkey, and continue to this day.

 

1) Blue Mug (Demo Version): GusGus (1998)

2) Metaphysics (ft. Mannish): One Inch Punch (1996)

3) Watching Windows (Album Version): Roni Size Reprazent ft. Onallee (1997)

4) Looking For The Jackalope (Single Version): Laika (1997)

5) The Foundation (Album Version): Thievery Corporation (1996)

6) Your Selfish Ways (Album Version By Mark Van Hoen): Locust ft. Zoe Niblett (1997)

7) What Is Happening: Cornershop (1997)

8) Solex In A Slipshod Style: Solex (1998)

9) Mind My Make-Up (Dust Junkys Remix): Finitribe ft. Katy Morrison (1998)

10) Seems Like (Bang Bang Mix By Xavier Jamaux): Rare (1998)

11) Teardrop (Scream Team Remix): Massive Attack ft. Elizabeth Fraser (1998)
 

Side Two (46:56) (Box) (Mega)

Celebrate The Drum

I'll confess straight up that I remember very little about this night, other than I had a really, really good time. It was my second and last Megadog gig, with Drum Club and Finitribe headlining. My first was in Derby, around March 1994 and fronted by Transglobal Underground and Banco De Gaia. 

Drum Club were on fire at this point, having just dropped second album Drums Are Dangerous, following debut Everything Is Now and seminal single Sound System. Finitribe had released An Unexpected Groovy Treat in 1992 and I'm guessing will have been showcasing tracks from their follow-up Sheigra, which followed in 1995; I recall lead single Brand New getting an airing. 

 

Setlist has been unfortunately unable to fill in the blanks on this occasion, so I've instead opted for a handful of tracks from Drum Club and Finitribe, circa 1993-1994. I've intentionally left off the Underworld mix of Sound System for a future post and the Andrew Weatherall mixes of 101 as they've featured here previously. In between, you get a clutch of remixes that appeared on singles and electronica/dance compilations. Not your typical Sunday fare, but a good way to dispel the November gloom (on this island, at least).

1) Brand New (Tip-Top Tune): Finitribe (1994)

2) Sound System (Dub Me Crazy): Drum Club ft. Wonder (1993)

3) Drums Are Dangerous (Stand And Fight Mix): Drum Club ft. Maxine Harvey (1994)

4) Monster In The House (Monster Mutley Medley): Finitribe ft. Mutley & The Gang (1993)

5) De-Lushed (Stars Above The Campfire Mix): Drum Club (1994)

6) Follow The Sun (Remix): Drum Club ft. Kate Holmes & Wonder (1993)

7) 101.93: Finitribe (1993)

 

1993: Monster In The House EP: 4, 7

1993: Sound System EP: 2 

1993: Trance Europe Express: 6

1994: Brand New EP: 1 

1994: Survival 2000: 5

1994: Taking Liberties: 3

 

Celebrate The Drum (49:54)

The World Keeps Spinning

Side 1 of a mixtape, originally compiled 10th August 1994 and featuring remixes of Sparks, One Dove and Flowered Up. All three were purchased on 12" vinyl during a brief period living in Derby. My main job during this time was working a 2-10pm shift in the distribution warehouse at Joseph Mason Paints, co-ordinating the cross-country delivery runs. Crappy job and hours, but it did mean that after-work clubbing was a regular thing and I had cash to squeeze more vinyl & CDs into my pokey, damp bedsit.

There were loads of great record shops in Derby city centre at the time. The only name that I recall with any real clarity was Way Ahead, but I can at least remember that I didn't get any of these 12" singles from there. The Sparks one was a surprise discovery at the time as I'd kind of lost touch with their output in the 1980s and suddenly, here was this 2-track 12" with remixes from the Finitribe stable. I bought it without having heard it, confident that it would be great and I was right. Similarly, the limited edition remix 12" of One Dove was a must buy as soon as I saw it. Secret Knowledge aka Kris Needs delivered the A side, following a brace of epic remixes of previous single Breakdown, but the Underworld remix on the flip is even better, nearly 15 minutes of rolling beats and increasingly urgent synths. And what better way to finish Side 1 than the second of two epic remixes from the Weatherall's Weekender 12" by Flowered Up? Nearly three decades on, this sequence of music gives me a thrill and takes me back to the happy moments in Derby, listening to these before going clubbing, or through headphones whilst out and about, shaking off a heavy one or rekindling the vibe of the night before.

1) National Crime Awareness Week (13 Minutes In Heaven) (Remix By Finiflex aka John Vick & Fred Parsons): Sparks (1993)

2) Why Don't You Take Me (Underworld Up 2 Down Remix): One Dove (1993)

3) Weekender (Audrey Is A Little Bit More Partial Mix By The Sabres Of Paradise aka Andrew Weatherall, Jagz Kooner & Gary Burns): Flowered Up (1992)

 

Side One (44:53)
 

101

When I started this blog on 7th December 2020, I didn't really have any thought of how often or how long I'd keep going with posting music. After a fairly relaxed start, I gradually built up some momentum and started posting daily from mid-May and today I bring you post #101. Even a casual glance around at the many blogs that I enjoy and have been inspired by, who have been going for years, decades even, and have thousands of posts to enjoy, means that this is no big deal in the scheme of things. If anything, getting this far has made me admire them even more. I really appreciate everyone who stops by to visit and read my offerings to cyberspace and it's great to receive your comments. Thanks to you all.

On that note, here's a little 101-themed playlist. Yes, arguably another excuse for yet more Andrew Weatherall. My positive bias aside, Weatherall's prodigious work as an artist, remixer, producer and DJ is such that you could probably play Six Degrees Of Separation with my music collection and find him in three. As a counter for Weatherall's ubiquity on this blog, I am pretty confident that this is the only time you'll see Sheena Easton here. Unless there's a Prince-themed post at some point in the future.

 

1) Electribal Memories: Electribe 101 (1990)

2) 101 (101% By Scooby Doo & Shaggy 2): Finitribe (1991)

3) Karma Sitar: 101 Strings (1972)

4) 101 (Def House Mix (Extended Club Version) By David Morales): Sheena Easton (1989)

5) 101 (Intensity Mix By Andrew Weatherall) (Full Length): Finitribe (1991)

6) 101 Rainbows Ambient Mix: Caustic Window (1994)

7) The Golden Age (CD101 Version) (Cover of Beck): The Flaming Lips (2002)

8) Desert Wind (Interstate 101 Mix): Banco De Gaia (1994)

9) Bossa Nova 101: Money Mark (1998)

10) Keys To Your Heart (Khayem's Reverse Reprise): The 101'ers (2021)

 

101 (1:01)
 

Sonic Shuffle

Yesterday's post on Billie Ray Martin and reference to Electribe 101 got me thinking about the confusion allegedly caused by "Finitribe 101" in 1991 (no, me neither). 

Any self-respecting John Peel listener would already be familar with Edinburgh's Finitribe, but 101 was - and is - personally their finest moment, particularly the remix by Andrew Weatherall which still sends a tingle down my spine whenever I hear it.

 

My 12" single is well-loved, very battered, crackly but not yet unplayable, not bad considering it's now 30 years old and has had hundreds of outings. The vinyl rip is also my most played Andrew Weatherall remix, according to my Apple Music playlist.

 

I was a little gutted at the time that the CD single and the otherwise excellent album An Unexpected Groovy Treat featured the Sonic Shuffle Edit rather the glorious full length 7-minute version and, to the best of my knowledge, the latter has never received a digital release. 

Whilst the Edit and Intensity mixes by Andrew Weatherall are head and shoulders above the other remixes by Graham Massey and Finitribe, the unedited Sonic Shuffle will always be the definitive version for me. I've included a less crackly rip, available on You Tube, for your listening pleasure.

101 (Sonic Shuffle) (Remix By Andrew Weatherall & Hugo Nicholson): Finitribe (1991)

50@50, Part Three: 1990-1999

Side One (30:09)

21) Loaded (Andrew Weatherall Mix): Primal Scream (1990)

22) 101 (Sonic Shuffle) (Remix By Andrew Weatherall & Hugo Nicholson): Finitribe (1991)

23) Fallen (Nancy & Lee Mix By Andrew Weatherall & One Dove): One Dove (1992)

24) What Godzilla Said To God When His Name Wasn't Found In The Book Of Life (Home Demo): American Music Club (1993)

25) Becoming More Like God (Radio Edit): Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart ft. Anneli Drecker (1994)

Side Two (25:11)

26) Planet Telex (Album Version): Radiohead (1995)

27) Les Yper-Sound (Album Version): Stereolab (1996)

28) Dry The Rain (Single Version): The Beta Band (1997)

29) Feelings: Leila ft. Donna Paul (1998)

30) Les Nuits (Album Version): Nightmares On Wax (1999)

Side One (30:09)

Side Two (25:11)

This could have been a shorter Side One if I'd included the radio edits of Primal Scream and Finitribe, but it would have been a disservice to both tracks so in true K-Tel tradition, I went for the full half hour side of vinyl for this one, and be damned with the quality. I first heard Loaded on The Chart Show, but the full 12" version was like something transmitted from a parallel universe. And so began my lifelong love affair with the genius that is Andrew Weatherall. Finitribe had previously been an industrial dance act, but 101 took them to a whole new level and again Weatherall provided the extra push over the cliff, not quite chucking in the kitchen sink but slinging a clacking computer printer into the mix. As if that wasn't enough, he enabled Glasgow's One Dove to shine brightly although sadly all too briefly. American Music Club had some major label interest in the early-mid 1990s and I was lucky enough to see them live in concert around this time,  but one of my favourite songs (and song titles) is a scrappy home demo from their Mercury album. Jah Wobble is Jah Wobble. 'Nuff said. The Bends is my favourite Radiohead album and Emperor Tomato Ketchup is my favourite Stereolab album, who were also awesome live in concert. My friend Stu introduced me to The Beta Band via The Patty Patty Sound EP, but it was a defining moment to hear John Cusack drop this song in a pivotal moment in the film version of High Fidelity. Likewise, listening to Leila's Like Weather album in Stu's London bedsit in the wee hours after a night on the town was a defining moment. It was another friend, Dave (long departed, never forgotten), who educated me in all things Nightmares On Wax, including this pre-millenium gem. Our mutual love of electronica and dance music shimmied us into the 21st century, seeking newer and weirder beats. And we got them. And more. Much more.