Happy Lands

 

juicy

Loved this pop-core tune back in the day ('92)

That's the juiciest mix but this one has its a-peel 

Still, pipped to the post by the original mix. 

Skin Up had another entertaining cheesy-quaver moment

Is that the voice of Neil the Hippie in there? 

Ha, something I only just noticed - Skin Up, aka Jason Laurence Cohen, went on to the Big Beat artist Laidback, who recorded for a label I was fond of for a moment - Bolshi

However I don't remember being that struck by the Laidback tunes - the outfits I liked most were Rasmus and Beachcomas

The latter did this fruit 'n veg themed oddity -  possibly Gardeners Question Time sourced samples that go "peaches, shaped like doughnuts... split and juicy",  "strawberries", "nuts.... and medleys"

Love it to the marrow. (Boom boom)

A Mekons sample too wouldyabelieve

One of my absolute favorites out of that late '90s harvest, the ripening bounty before all went to shit in the early 2000s

That's my video by the way, illustrated with idyllic images of the Chilterns (watch out for my mum) and Oxfordshire and Maryon Park, South London -  the bulk of the pix first aired in this elegiac post

UKG Cosmology

 

exhibition rationale:

MATERIAL ARCHIVE: UKG COSMOLOGY

MON 11 MAR – FRI 2 AUG 2024

An exploration of personal and collective histories from the UK garage rave scene of the early 2000’s, from Angel Zinovieff. 

This Material Archive brings together a collection of works made between 2014 and 2023. Reflecting on sonic, choreographic and social histories of the UK garage rave scene, it maps themes such as joy in collective movement, transcendence, madness, the power of the imagination and the division of time. Weaving both deeply personal and collective experiences, the work encompasses archival materials, video work, music and text. 

More information

"the less funky the better"

Belleville One defines hardcore - in this Rapido special report on UK teknorave -  as the absenting of funk and soul - "the less funky the better"

While also expressing anxieties about this tendency:

 "I hope it's reached its limits now - if it goes any further it might as well be rock and roll" - Kevin Saunderson

Still, KS was shrewd enough - mersh-cenary enough - to go along it, while the going and the getting was good 

Paring back the funk and the soul

Even slingin' a break underneath a Mentasm lick 

What did Juan & Derrick have to say about these tunes, I wonder? 

Let alone Eddie "True People" Flashin' Fowlkes 

I mean, they are great tunes but they are utterly generic -  wholly submerged in the Belgium-meets-Essex sound of that season

The auteur signature completely dissolves, as far as I can hear

Getting Grooverider in to remix 'Up Tempo'

The original 'Straight Outta Hell' feels a bit more distinctive - more psychedelically disoriented 

But here's a thumping jungle remix

And here's another thumping jungle remix

Crikey, this is some cover

Bonus Britcore flashbacks