Havin’It In Ibiza Vol 1 94/95 – Havin’It Records – 1994

Don’t judge a CD by it’s cover, the title simply reflects the happy-go-lucky party feel at the time and thankfully so does the CD. I remember buying this and feeling like I had a ‘real’ slice of Ibiza coming out of my speakers, it was different to the other dance comps at the time, this had a feeling of being genuine, the tracks weren’t 10 a penny and a lot of them I have never seen anywhere but on this CD, track 9. La Luna is the only ‘famous’ one on here I think.

The general vibe from this CD is happy house, bordering on cheesy and possibly a couple of tracks cross the line but there are some really stong examples on here, track 1. On Ya Way, screams fun with a chirpy soft piano loop and chunky bass, track 2. Release Your Mind is much the same. Track 3. Never Gonna Give You Up (don’t think about Rick Astley…damn too late) goes down tempo with some vocal house but is still quality and has nothing to do with Rick Astley. Track 6 Ibiza Get Wild has a great piano riff and is a proper ‘anthem’, weirdly track 10. That Piano Anthem opens with guitar and there isn’t a piano in sight.

My favourite track is 12. Eastern Vibes as it builds nicely but doesn’t lose the plot and has aged incredibly well, track 13. Love Fever hammers along at a good pace with plenty going on to keep you interested, also there’s a few nice ‘pops’ from the needle on the vinyl, them were the days.

1. On Ya Way (Original Mix) – Helicopter
2. Release Your Mind (Naughty But Funky Mix) – Naughty But Nice
3. Never Gonna Give You Up (Big Bump Mix) – Ruby Turner
4. The Feelin (Havin’It Mix) – Watchman
5. Come On – Itchy Scratchy
6. Ibiza Get Wild (Sunrise Mix) – Pedro & Raoul
7. Feel So High (Freaky Frenzy Mix) – Sound Environment
8. Everybody Shake Your Body – Maltese Massive
9. La Luna (Original Mix) – Partick Prins
10. That Piano Anthem – Two Amigo’s
11. Had Enough (Rebound Dub Mix) – Sound Environment
12. Eastern Vibes (Original Mix) – Mathar
13. Love Fever – Chapter 9
14. Everybody Party – D. Enrico

React Test Two – React -1994

The sticker reads “Full length CD sampler for the PRICE OF A SINGLE” well that was me sold! Not a bad buy either, aswell as all time classic Sourmash – Pilgrimage To Paradise there’s Clock – Holding On which I eventually bought the single and Reefa – You Can’t Stop The Groove a retro twangy guitar riff over a more modern keyboard with subtle vocals and some nice audio details, also Stories In Dubh – Melody & Harmony starts off like it’s heading into a heavy break but actually turns into a deep house track with warm vocals and an uplifting piano loop.

By 1994 if this CD is anything to go by tunes seemed to be losing the harder sound they had a couple of years earlier, but evidence of their roots can still be heard, especially in track 6. Dam Tuff – Enforcer, the piano riff gives way to a truly rave sounding break.

1. GTO – Wonderful
2. Elevator – Ha!
3. Mrs Wood – Calamity Jane
4. Sourmash – Pilgrimage To Paradise (Barrel Beat Mix)
5. Technohead – Accelerator 1
6. Enforcer – Dam Tuff
7. Punchanella – San Trancisco (Air Tattoo Reconstruction)
8. Clock – Holding On (Portamento Mix)
9. MASI – Apache
10. Reefa – You Can’t Stop The Groove
11. Stories In Dubh – Melody & Harmony (Chapter 3)
12. Bass Hit – The Beat That Makes U Move (The Rhythm Hype Mix)

The Prodigy Experience – XL Recordings – 1992

The Prodigy Experience was the first proper album I bought and it was one of the earliest examples of this type of music making the transition from underground niche to mainstream popularity. Although I’m still fond of The Prodigy, this would be the only album I ever bought by them, their appearance on many compliations and mixes over the following few years didn’t really justify me buying any more of their stuff apart from the odd single maybe.

Strangely my favourite track is Weather Experience which is probably the least typical sounding Prodigy track on here, closely followed by Your Love and who doesn’t like Charly?

1. Jericho
2. Music Reach (1/2/3/4)
3. Wind It Up
4. Your Love (Remix)
5. Hyperspeed (G-Force Part 2)
6. Charly (Trip Into Drum And Bass Version)
7. Out Of Space
8. Everybody In The Place (155 And Rising)
9. Weather Experience
10. Fire (Sunrise Version)
11. Ruff In The Jungle Bizness
12. Death Of The Prodigy Dancers (Live)

 

The 3rd Chapter: Break Beat House – XL Recordings – 1991

I first discovered XL Recordings through The Prodigy (that sounds like I actually know The Prodigy, I don’t) as so often happens a label has a certain ‘sound’ and if you liked it chances are they’ll have more of the same but different. This technique is working for me right now with Anjunadeep, you know what I’m talking about.

Back then there wasn’t a whole lot to choose from especially on CD, so you couldn’t really be too picky but it was a pretty safe bet to buy whatever XL put out.

This is the 3rd chapter in what I assume to be a series but I never did spot any of the others. This edition is centered on Break Beat House although on listening to it again we’d probably now call it something else, it has the typical heavy rave sound, stabby synths, looped vocals “I like to smoke marijuana” being a personal favourite, can we even say that these days?

The CD is in a DJ friendly unmixed format, like one of your parents old fashioned albums. It opens with the ever brilliant Sweet Harmony and yet again for the third post running features SL2, I said there wasn’t much to choose from back then!

1. Liquid – Sweet Harmony
2. Shut Up And Dance – The Green Man (Rum And Black Mix)
3. Tronik House – Up Tempo (Reese Mix)
4. SL2 – On A Ragga Tip
5. Project One – Smokin
6. The House Crew – Keep The Fire Burning
7. The Prodigy – Everybody In The Place (Fairground Mix)
8. Nu-Matic – Hard Times
9. First Prodject – Right Before    ***yes that’s how it’s spelt***
10. Kicks Like A Mule – The Bouncer (DJ Seduction Remix)
11. SL2 – DJ’s Take Control
12. Mark One – Hoovers And SprayCans

Rave Generation – Dino Entertainment – 1993

 

Well if this isn’t a snap shot of what was going in ’93 then I don’t know what is. I mean just look at that track listing! You’ve got The Prodigy, 2 Unlimited, Bizarre Inc, SL2, Alternate, Moby (wow is that nearly 20 too!), Utah Saints, Kicks Like A Mule, Opus III and that’s just disc 1!

40 tracks total, some good, some excellent and to be honest if you can forgive the fact times have moved on there are only a couple of duds, they don’t make ’em like that any more.

Hidden gems disc 1, Stakker Humanoid and Exorcist.
Hidden gems disc 2, Dub War and Different Strokes

Disc 1

1. Everybody In The Place – The Prodigy
2. Take Me Away – Cappella feat Loleatta Holloway
3. Get Ready For This – 2 Unlimited
4. Playing With Knives – Bizarre Inc
5. DJ’s Take Control – SL2
6. Activ 8 (Come With Me) – Altern8
7. We’ve Got To Live Together – R.A.F.
8. Go – Moby
9. Something Good – Utah Saints
10. Some Justice – Urban Shakedown
11. Temple Of Dreams – Messiah
12. Injected With A Poison – Praga Khan
13. Far Out – Sonz Of A Loop Da Loop Era
14. Trip To The Moon – Acen
15. Stakker Humanoid – Humanoid
16. Exorcist – Scientist
17. The Bouncer – Kicks Like A Mule
18. Sweet Harmony – Liquid
19. Rave Generator – Toxic Two
20. It’s A Fine Day – Opus III

Disc 2

1. Frequency – Altern8
2. Twilight Zone – 2 Unlimited
3. Charly – Prodigy
4. Night In Motion – Cubic 22
5. Rushing The House – Xenophobia
6. I Want You (Forever) – DJ Carl Cox
7. Infinity – Guru Josh
8. Different Strokes – Isotonik
9. Lock Up – Zero B
10. Dub War – Dance Conspiracy
11. (I Wanna Give You) Devotion – Nomad
12. Killer – Adamski feat Seal
13. Way In My Brain – SL2
14. Time To Get Up – Liquid
15. Hardcore Uproar – Together
16. Move Your Body – Xpansions
17. Then I Feel Good – Katherine E
18. Anasthasia – T99
19. The Bee – Scientist
20. Inssomniak – DJPC

RaveAlert – Telstar – 1992

OK, so I know what you’re thinking, not exactly a shining example to start a new blog with but hey! it was the early 90’s and trying to keep things in some kind of rough chronological order this is possibly my oldest piece, is it really 20 years old?!

Although RaveAlert is showing its age (the title for starters!) there are some strong tracks on here. If you can listen to the opening track Sesame’s Treat without smiling then there’s no helping you, Rave Alert the title track is still a good listen now, On A Ragga Tip still gets played on pirate and some mainstream radio stations, Temple Of Dreams changed my expectations at the time of what could be done with the sound, Hurt You So has that early 90’s sound which is used ironically today but no this was the real thing! Trip To The Moon – amazing and a little creepy and the end track Forevergreen was just staggering, I have a strong love of Sci-fi and if you’ve heard the narration over the top of this track you’ll understand why I love it so much!

This, for me at least was an important cd, it introduced me to Messiah of which I have quite a few singles and the 21st Century Jesus Album (V.good, even now) and I bought the Sesame’s Treat single and the Finitribe single on hearing this. In 1992 I was 14.

1. Sesame’s Treat – Smart-e’s
2. Rave Alert (Full Alert Mix) – Praga Khan
3. A Trip To Trumpton – Urban Hype
4. Rhythm Is A Dancer – (Purple Hazed Mix) – Snap
5. L.S.I (Freaked Out V 1.02) The Shamen
6. On A Ragga Tip – SL2
7. Hypnotic ST-8 (ST-8 Of Art Edit) Altern-8
8. Please Don’t Go – KWS
9. Back To Front (The Rub It Radio Edit) Adamski
10. Temple of Dreams – Messiah
11. O.P.P – Naughty By Nature
12. Tell Me Why (M&M Mix) – Rachel Wallace
13. Hurt You So – Johnny L
14. Trip To The Moon (The Darksid) – Acen
15. Workaholic – 2 Unlimited
16. Forevergreen (Forevermost Excellent Edit) – Finitribe

Electronic Dance Music Reviews From The Early 90’s To The Present

Update August 2013 – Electronica Restoration is now 1 year old! Thanks to everyone who has read my posts and is following me, I’m going to try even harder over the next year to dig out some real gems and hard to find EDM.

I was hunting through my garage for something and I come across a lost box of some of my best old house and dance CD’s tucked away under some junk, a box I’d been looking for on and off for a few years! I opened the box and discovered some CD’s were mint, some were damaged, some were missing discs but some of them were missing altogether and after I spent a rainy Sunday afternoon flicking through these tracks I just knew I had to restore my old collection.

In the search for my old stuff on the internet I’ve come across loads of CD’s that for whatever reason I missed on release, so this blog is now becoming like a ‘history of CD dance music’. I’m buying up the old stuff faster than I’m reviewing it as well as the new releases.

So I welcome you to Electronica Restoration, if you’re pining for the old days, or you’re new to EDM and want to know what you’ve been missing all these years you’re in the right place, enjoy!

Dan