Pasted Memories

The video that set me off on this ramble is an interview between Daniel Avery – (who ive written about and interviewed before here for Clash Music ) and an early favorite producer Justin Robertson. A happy coincidence that this young producer should end up working in such esteemed company ..anyway digressing

 

 

The vid is short and I hope that the Ransom Note will put up more of their discussion as it only hints at a bigger discussion about drug use in clubs and the crossover between the dance and rock worlds that influenced these two and largely most of the music Ive followed for the last 20 years

 

In the interview it touches on the subject of atmospheres created, abetted or hindered by drugs in clubs. Justin Robertson notes that speed use was more prevalent in the 90s. Many people including myself used incredibly strong paste speed or Base to top up and prolong our E high, a wrap of billy , couple of gary ablets and a Louis or Henry of decent punk were your standard consumption on a Friday or Saturday night across the UK- listening to Packet Of Peace this was a personal favorite for preparing for the weekend onslaught special significance as the packet of peace represented (to me anyway) the ‘phet needed to keep going.

 

 

Packet of Peace ( Chemical Bros Remix ) is a great example of the rise of the sound of break-beat combined with techno or Big Beat as it was to become known and lambasted. The Chems pretty much pioneered this sound along with Underworld label mates on Junior Boys Own connections being label mates with the Chemical Brothers on early releases and signed by fellow Boys Own fanzine, Label boss Faith creator and super producer Terry Farley ) along with Orbital they made a very special British chimera that was so good for vigorous red faced gibbon dancing and will lead me to t talk about breaks or Big Beat further on although much of that sound ,to me was a watering down of the formula especially with the imitators that were to come such as Norman Cook ( bar Rennie Pilgrim , Zinc and quite a few other producers but no time for discussing that here!)

 

 

the formula …a simple idea of tracks filled with rock-style verse/chorus/verse flows, breakbeat samples and the build/drop format found in house music combined with a massive wibling 303 , put in plenty of drops for rush inducing = Big Beat Banger – alot of big beat was rubbish and latterly breaks became a monotonous background music for mindless drug taking for pasty people with dreadlocks and musty fawn colored fibres and utility belts (admit it those are just drug bum bags ) But that era was yet to come…

 

 

but not to steam roller over all breaks or dare i say it trip hop / big beat Andrew Weatheral with studio partner Keith Tenniswood produced some great tracks as Two Lone Swordsmen and many other aliases as Radioactiveman

 

 

and if there is a greater hymn to cold shivering comedowns I dont know what – cover from your lover …

 

 

– bought from Flying Records in Bournemouth I believe Flying had shops in London and maybe Brighton there’s little written about this great mini chain Ive been reliably informed by the most excellent Paul Byrne of Apiento That was owned by Charlie Chester and run by Rocky from Rocky and Diesel ( another tape fave much copied in Bournemouth ) and X-press 2 fame

 

video evidence of Rocky and Diesel having it large with ravers on industrial strength garys …

 

 

there;s the Junior Boys Own network again … anyway – big up to Sam Blay for keeping all his flyers and running the excellent Geriatric ravers Site Flying was one of many great record shops in Bournemouth and had great links to Boys Own stocking the fanzine and of course many Junior Boys own releases and generally was a focal point for the kids (flyer collecting rat bags who rarely bought anything ) , diggers, ravers , promoters and visiting djs. Not Forgotten !

 

One of the tracks I did manage to scrape some paper round money for and a fave down at Juicy Fruit Madisons Fire Island – There But For The Grace Of God ( Farley and Heller naturally ) ) I remember a certain Jay from Jac The Disco having this – Jays still playing out at many a discerning disco and acid house night in London and the West and has just started building up an analog arsenal to make his own dark materials … looking forward to those!

 

 

So the Drugs…. the speed to be found on the streets of Britain and most sought after was base – unfinished and raw complete with a disgusting stench and foul tasting first the unbelievable energy flash and enthusiam for everything then the long dawn and day filled with inner self hatred. it was very easy to misjudge a big disgusting blob wrapped in a rizla in a darkened club. I can still taste it yurrgghh!!

 

The rise of a cold fetid grey morning dreading the prospect of a grim Saturday working at Sainsburys in Boscombe still causes a mild flash of anxiety.. After a few teenage years of use every other weekend I vowed to never try it again…however it seems speed is back or never went away in Germany and Austria

 

Recently here in Austria Ive sampled very pure speed with a lot of trepidation – a friend said you can take a little and have a very small buzz and I did and found it most agreeable and never like the rollercoaster high and then spirit crushing low

 

Taking little bumps and feeling most agreeable at a night with mike simonetti  put on by the Tingle Tangle club – in the beautiful but troubled rote bar of the volks theatre ( a great venue which is sadly run by idiots ) however my high was upset and I got noticeably more aggressive as the bar staff kept turning on the lights to serve people and after many attempts by the promoter, their friends and even Mike Simonetti himself to get the dicks to turn down the house lights off I lost it in a speedy rage and started effing and jeffing at the bar staff, waggling my fist ( impudent fury!) and bugging out at them met some great people that night but the night was tarred by those effing dicks from Rote Bar .. Left in an impudent fury and vowed to never set foot in that shithole again!

 

Thinking back I didn’t feel that high, but I must of looked like a nut as the barman called for back up …so since then I’ve have steered clear of any phets ! What was interesting was that there was very little comedown nothing more than a hangover really and thankfully I’m more in control and able to turn down the offer of narcotics – Ive had lots of friends wind up with serious drug problems and am thankful I’ve never gone too far gone.

 

Digressing… Around 92 – 95 Ecstasy was becoming less pure and more people were resorting to speed to keep their high going, not to mention Amyl as well as an extra rush inducing part of the weekend munition. Packet Of Peace perfectly encapsulates those frazzled times and is an underrated Chemical Brothers remix. The insane synth wibbling and the pounding break-beats indicates the Chemical Brothers at their peak and The breakdown sounds almost like a minimal Techno track ala Maurizio around the 5.40 mark.

 

Here’s Basic Channel Maurizio – dubby techno where we can see the roots of minimal beginning – zzzzzzz well this is a fine record but cant lie that alot of minimal was and is just snooze A’clock for me …its rise indicated what I would call the dark days of mediocrity ..

 

PHEW! Read the rest of the piece over at the excellent Capari Safari site….