01. Jaime Read – E.E.G.
A controversial track to start with. ‘E.E.G’, written and produced by Jaime Read was stolen and released under Joe Lewis. E.E.G’s hypnotic pads and divine drum programming gave me the illusion of the sound of Detroit until I discovered recently it was made in Brighton, UK, my hometown.
02. Bushwacka! – Tool B
Bushwacka’s ‘Tool B’ borrows its Acid line and percussion hits from NY producers Frankie Bones & Lenny Dee and wraps them together with a beautiful synth chord progression.
03. Prodigy – Poison
Hard hitting ‘Poison’ by The Prodigy still packs a punch with its distinctive bass-line and layers of sampled breaks ripped apart in true Prodigy fashion. The Prodigy inspired me to forge a career in music; so it goes without saying when I discovered Howlett used a Roland JD-990 to create the synth parts for ‘Poison’ I had to run out and get one.
04. William Onyeabor – Good Name
Nigerian Funk musician Onyeabor has style that still works on the dance floor. Onyeabors Moog driven rhythmic groove has been a favourite of mine on the record deck this year. It’s oldie but goody.
05. N.O.I.A – The Rule to Survive
There’s a fine line between Italo-Disco sounding amazing or tipping over to Stock, Aitken and Waterman territory but in this case ‘The Rule to Survive’ by N.O.I.A gets it right by bridging the gap between Disco and House.
06. Akira Yamaoka – White Noiz
Akira Yamaoka’s skill in creating one of the most captivating survival horror soundtracks is statement of his talent. Yamaoka’s use of re-sampled textures on the Silent Hill franchise was one of the key features that made Silent Hill 2 considered a masterpiece. My track ‘Yamaoka’ pays tribute to the artist’s style.
07. Com Truise – Stop
Com Truise has been delivering 80’s nostalgic Synthwave way before the release of the Stranger Things OST. Truise’s big American analogue sound is the blueprint for Vapourwave without the irony. If anyone deserves to score the new Blade Runner film, it’s this man.
08. Kraftwerk – Computer Love
The sound of Kraftwerk is God to electronic music and their 1981 ‘Computer World’ being the Techno bible. I had the pleasure of meeting Wolfgang Flür last spring and he was asked the question ‘What do you remember most when touring with Kraftwerk?’ his response… “Lot’s of sex!”. True Legend!
09. Donato Dozzy + Tin Man – Test 7
Beautiful Acid-House track that proves not all 303 leads have to be distorted and heavy. ‘Test 7’ delivers a hypnotising Acid line with a time signature that alternates between 15/4 and 14/4. Test 7’s melodic 303 line was a huge inspiration behind my track ‘Zanoni’.
10. Altern 8 – Passion Devotion
‘Passion Devotion’ from Techno legend Mark Archer under his Altern 8 alias with band member Chris Peat is a prime example of what can be achieved with just a sequencer and sampler. The vinyl pressing sounds as if the tracks were mastered direct from cassette tape, the pressing is thin but I love it! It resembles the DIY punk attitude that the Rave scene was built on; something I can relate to with my Mode7 Records venture.
