giles.ward@postoffice.co.uk wrote:
quoted 6 lines I'd recommend the 69 album on R&S for examples of Carl Craig's more intense
>
> I'd recommend the 69 album on R&S for examples of Carl Craig's more intense
> techno. The production is pretty raw, quite harsh in places, but it's a
> very 'live' sounding collection. 'Filter King/No highs/Finale' could have
> been the first example of that track filtering tweakery that appears on
> loads of stuff these days.
Damn!
I knew I was forgetting something but couldn't put my finger on it!
Thanks, Giles. The amended "Beginner's guide to Carl Craig" is below.
Cheers,
Bill
Start with the Psyche/BFC compilation "Elements 1989-1990". It compiles
Carl's work under the Psyche and BFC aliases, including the gems "Chicken Noodle
Soup", "Neurotic Behavior", and a personal favorite, "How the West Was Won".
Next, you have a couple of choices.
- If you buy vinyl and like jazz, I'd get the Innerzone Orchestra 12" that was
released on Mo Wax a couple years ago - there are a couple of different
versions, the one I'd get has the original "Bug in the Bassbin" on one side, and
the "jazz version" of "Bug in the Bassbin" on the flip. The jazz version
features Rodney Whitaker on standup bass and Francisco Mora on percussion.
- If you like house music at all, get the Paperclip People compilation album
"Secret Tapes of Dr. Eich". Great stuff. Should be relatively easy to find;
it's on Planet E but it seems to have good distribution. The alternative to
this, if you buy vinyl and/or DJ, is to get the 12"s from this album, several of
which seem to be easily procured. Standouts from this album are "The Floor",
"Oscillator", and "The Climax", but they're all great dance music.
- If you like techno, try to find the 69 material. There were 3 12" records
released on Planet E by Carl as "69" - "4 Jazz Funk Classics", "Sound on Sound",
and "Lite Music". All are incredibly worth having, but equally hard to find.
Easier to get is the R&S Records release "Sound of Music", which compiles tracks
from "Sound on Sound" and "Lite Music". Don't get scared off by the word
"techno" - this isn't some 4-on-the-floor-909-kick-drum-with-alternating-hi-hat
thing. Instead, think chopped up beats and raw funky nature. Hard to describe,
and hard to stop listening to once you've gotten an earful.
Then there are the remixes. The tops for me:
Tori Amos "God" remix, which works a tuned tom-drum sample and vocal snippet
into a killer track.
the Spacetime Continuum track off "Remit Recaps" - one of the largest bass
sounds I've ever heard on record, plus some of the best dance drum programming
in recent years - finger snaps, perfectly placed beats, it just goes on and on.
Can's "Future Days" remix (the "Blade Runner" mix) off "Sacrilege". It's a fast
tempo (maybe around 135-140 BPM) track that just keeps building layer upon layer
of snares, pads, vocals, and other elements, but never brings in a kick.
Sublime.
Finally...start saving your pennies for the new Innerzone Orchestra album
"Programmed". Having only heard bits and pieces (the live set last year in
Detroit, the wonderful "Manufactured Memories" on the Header2 compilation),
I can only say that this has the potential to be Carl Craig's best work to
date.
That's saying a lot, if you know *anything* about what this guy's done. It
should be out in May from what I've heard.
--
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