Flowered Up 'Weekender' (Heavenly, 1992)

Flowered Up had - to me, anyway - seemed a bit of a joke up to this point. They seemed to the be the result of a major label head thinking "Christ, this Independent Dance thing is selling records, I'd better get some of that for my label." They just seemed like the Cockney Mondays and weren't to be taken seriously. They - and this track in particular - I'm sure owe a debt to the likes of World Of Twist too.

So, as statements of intent and vision go, the magnificent 'Weekender' was a complete challenge to that preconception. Doing a long record is a tricky thing to get right - I mean, it's easy to make a long record but to make a long track that's compelling is hard. When it works, though, you've created A Journey (a word that has become somewhat devalued by The X Factor et al).

'Weekender' is a total trip, shining a light on the split between those who were 'living it 24-7' (the Flowered Up lads, presumably) and those who were dipping into the ecstasy culture for 48 hours a week. It enters quietly before erupting into a rolling, shuffling indie dance beat with spindly Mondays guitar. So far, so expected.

When it gets to the chorus, the ante is just upped and the track encompasses searing guitar and then runs into a more free-form jam, rolling through section after, breaking down into mellowness, building back up, then breaking down into a sunsplash section with crisp licks of guitar and synthetic brass, crashing back into the main riff, entering the chill-out room with a squelchy acid section with Pacific State sax, then carrying the sax back into the main song and winding up for ferocious climax, just leaving us with a nice snatch of dialogue that sums it all up.

Download Flowered Up 'Weekender' (Baggy, Indie Dance mp3) (Box.net)