Rave had its heyday in the ’90s and unfortunately, I was just a little kid who was more interested in making Lego forts than spending all night in warehouses getting fucked off my face and dancing like a rag doll. Of course, I’ve made up for that since but it’ll never replace the fake nostalgia I feel when I listen to old school bangers. In light of this, I thought I’d compile a list of the 10 best rave/techno tunes from that period. They’re all seminal tracks in their own right, from the cathartic depths of Orbital’s ‘Halcyon + On + On’ to the comedic venom of Urban Hype’s ‘Trip to Trumpton’, but together they’d probably make one hell of a set…if the DJ was a bit of a schizophrenic with no particular focus. Still, in no particular order, I present to you ‘10 Rave Tunes That Should Never Die’.

Awesome 3 – Don’t Go

Cloud 9 – You Got Me Burnin’

Jonny L – Hurt You So

Prodigy – Everybody in the Place (Fairground Remix)

Hold tight, there is more to read »

For some people chiptunes are the aural equivalent of being chainsawed in half, they just can’t handle the awesome lo-bit vibes. For others — myself included — they’re sick. I was brought up on the sound of my Gameboy and Megadrive beeping out dope little tunes and listening to chip music is as exhilarating as listening to the soundtrack from Street Fighter, Toejam and Earl or James Pond II: Codename Robocod (classic). This mix by Henry Homesweet is a comprehensive collection of some of the sickest modern chip available and it’s pure madness. Get your head out of the yoghurt pot and bang it against your Amiga instead!

Tracklist after the jump.

Henry Homesweet – Essential Chip Mix 2010 by Essential Chip

Hold tight, there is more to read »

Recorded at Thekla in Bristol for the Foo Magazine versus Monkey!Knife!Fight! night a couple of weeks ago, ‘The History of Dubstep’ is Plastician’s masterfully compiled journey charting the genre’s evolution from its humble garage beginnings to the diverse landscape we know today. Featuring tunes by the likes of Wookie, Skream, Flux Pavilion, Artwork, DJ Zinc and Sukh Knight, there’s a huge amount of quality running through this mix and some equally good MCing from P-Money — the guy who destroyed Ghetts — augmenting proceedings. If there’s one thing you download today, don’t let it be another Anal Adventure flick…let it be this.

Plastician and P Money – The History of Dubstep

Tracklisting after the jump.

Hold tight, there is more to read »

Amazing. From the lush beginnings of ‘Perforated’ to the frenetic finale of ‘The Epic Last Song’, Outside the Box is a pleasure to behold. Somehow richer than his self-titled debut, Skream’s sound has matured to positive effect, offering sweeter melodies, deeper pads and a new dimension of gorgeous vocal presence. Tracks such as ‘How Real’ featuring Freckles and ‘Where You Should Be’ featuring Sam Frank are testament to the evolution of his style and the rhythmic fluidity of the album as a whole. Similarly, his collaboration with dBridge and Instra:mental on ‘Reflections’ and the appearance of 8-bit infused roller ‘Listenin to the Records on My Wall’ displays a versatility which has become increasingly evident in his work with Magnetic Man. This is no surprise as Skream’s involvement in the development and innovation of dubstep is undeniable and I believe that from every angle Outside the Box is another step in the progression of the genre’s unspoken yet over-arching blueprint.

With all this talk of maturity and change you could be forgiven for thinking that raw edge of old was gone, but that is certainly not the case. Nastiness is still a tangible force in Skream’s world and ‘Wibbler’ delivers enough to venom to down a herd of elephants mounted by Ghurkas on crack. There are also plenty of other tunes, such as ‘Fields of Emotion’, ‘The Epic Last Song’ and ‘CPU’, offering up their fair share of booming low-end masochism, so bass is by no means scarce. At the opposite end of the scale, aperitif ‘Perforated’ introduces us to the action with a largely percussion free soundscape and ‘A Song for Lenny’ acts in a similar fashion as a light interlude before ‘The Epic Last Song’ executes the firework finish. These two particular tunes are a fine example of the album’s lavish musicality and Skream’s new attention to atmosphere and majesty.

I literally have nothing bad to say about this album. It is a tour de force and should be lauded as such. I just hope the genre elitists can handle listening to it knowing everyone else loves it too. It’s incredible.

Skream – How Real (feat.Freckles)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Buy Outside the Box at 7digital.

I like Minilogue, I like Extrawelt and I also think Leopards are pretty fucking cool. Basically, this track has all the components it needs to leapfrog the other crap I rifle through and firmly position itself at the forefront of my existence. I guess the fact that it’s an amazing tune also helps…although not as much as the leopard thing, they sit in trees a lot and sometimes they eat monkeys. Monkeys are basically stupid people with cute faces.

Anyway, spacious and impelling, the distinctive clarity of Extrawelt’s percussion enhances Minilogue’s ambient leanings, giving birth to the reason I think minimal is sick. This song is better than the time I found a bucket and spade in Cornwall and spent the day building sandcastles with my childhood friend Elijah, who definitely exists because I have lots of friends…honestly…loads…

I have no idea how old this is, chances are it’s pretty ancient but it’s still worthy of a post. Listennnn!

I’m not a big fan of Eminem’s recent stuff, I think he’s lost his edge a bit and ‘Not Afraid’ is pretty poor by any standard. I still, however, deem him to be one of the greatest lyricists ever to walk the damn planet and have recently returned to rinsing Infinite. The title tune is amazing and seems to inspire a strange sense of nostalgia in me, or at least that’s what I think it is. Who knew there was anything left in this cold, dead heart? When it beats it rattles around like a walnut in a wooden box…