The Meat Beat records are a barren zone for me (great live experience though) so I am disinclined to give props but when pressed will concede that this has some of the elements of junglizm pregnantly present and correct, if at this stage torpider than what would follow. The rootical chant, the euphoric soul-diva cry, the clattery breakbeat, the rumbling B-line, the sonar blips, the druggy detournement ("burning with ecstasy"). It's similar to the Moody Boys stuff on Journey to Dubland. But also anticipates the coalition corralled on "Narra Mine" by Genaside II.
Love the use of the Cheryl Lynn shout-out from the end of the "Encore" 12-inch
Classic! Really makes you think how much the music mutated and evolved over the last 33 years.
ReplyDeleteAny drum and bass haters who pick on a certain mainstream sound and comment how repetitive it may sound do not know the history of this music and how insanely diverse the sound is.
Apparently Dangers was inspired to make Babylon by this 1989 classic https://youtu.be/U3nOuPp-zMg. Sounds more proto-jungle at 45 https://youtu.be/KyC4BrAQrWY
ReplyDeleteAh, Depthcharge - that might be the very one by them I reviewed by them in MM's single pages. Actually now I think of it, I reviewed two of the Depth Charges singles, so chances are quite good. Favorable write-ups too.
ReplyDeleteWas there some kind of connection with Eon, or were they just on the same label, Vinyl Solution?
Definitely can hear the link with "Radio Babylon"...
Ah, looking into it, Depth Charge / J. Saul Kane had a breakbeat tekno alter-ego The Spider, and there's a remix of its only track "Help", by Eon - https://youtu.be/kBaLdi3BGC0
And here's the dub version by Kane himself - https://youtu.be/ewjpgPbiddE
And the original.... https://youtu.be/nJA79Coqk1M
"Help" - so that's kinda proto-darkside, rather like the Eon tunes like "Fear: the Mindkiller" and "Basket Case (White Coats Mix)"