Pop Will Eat Itself - Def Con One (Chapter 22, 1988)

PWEI embrace the Fon Force.

'Def Con One' is the point at which PWEI dropped the laddish cartoon Grebo-isms of 'Box Frenzy' and focused on a ciderdelic, sampladelic homebrew that did the groundwork for indie-dance. 

Sitting somewhere between Gene & Jim Are Into Shakes' 'Shake!' and Bomb The Bass' 'Beat Dis', 'Def Con One' hurtles along on a fuzz of guitar, a sleek machine-tooled rhythm with burbling bass and their inimitable take on That Rap Music. Samples from Siouxsie & The Banshees, The Beastie Boys and The Twilight Zone theme music are thrown into the mix/maelstrom for good measure.

The chorus lifts the riff from The Stooges' 'I Wanna Be Your Dog' (not that I knew that at the time, of course) and boasts the classic refrain "Big Mac, fries to-go, Big Mac fries to-go, Big Mac fries to-go, Gimme Big Mac, Gimme fries to-go" long before that song about Kentucky Fried Chicken and a Pizza Hut.


Seminal.


Download Pop Will Eat Itself - Def Con One (Indie Dance, Grebo, 1988) (Divshare)

The House Of Love 'Shine On (Fuck Version)' (Creation, 1988)

Brittle, stripped-back version of The House Of Love's second-greatest moment.

All the thrilling bombast and shimmering anticipation of the single version is stripped back to just Guy Chadwick and a guitar. Reveals the tension and classicism of the songwriting. As well as that Guy Chadwick was somewhat plummy of intonation.

Originally given away as a flexi at a House Of Love gig, this mp3 is lifted from the wonderfully-titled 'Pensioners On Ecstasy' compilation (1990). Listen carefully and you'll hear that it's actually mastered from the flexi itself. How very Creation Records.

Download The House Of Love 'Shine On (Fuck Version)' (indie alternative rock) (Badongo)

Happy Mondays 'Wrote For Luck (7" Version)' (Factory, 1988)

Flailing, manic majesty from pre-Madchester Happy Mondays.

'Wrote For Luck' channels the lyrical and rhythm section mania of vintage Can - Can's 'Tago Mago' favourite 'Halleluwah' (mp3) in particular - thereby paving the way for latter-day Krautrock-ing indie like Connan Mockasin's mental 'Forever Dolphin Love'.

As with the rest of the 'Bummed' album, it's the point where the Mondays' vibe was firmly in the organic, Krautrock, groove marathon camp. The moment before Paul Oakenfold's sequencers took over and Madchester began, leaving behind the more organic dance/rock hybrids of New Fast Automatic Daffodils et al.

Beautiful insanity.

Download Happy Mondays 'Wrote For Luck (7" Version)' (indie alternative mp3 download) (Mediafire)

The Stone Roses 'Made Of Stone (Demo)' (1988)

Won't be going, but nice to have them back. Maybe they will still have it.

I couldn't let the week pass without a small tribute to the reformed Stone Roses. The press conference was good value for money and, maybe just maybe, they can live up to their legacy.

If nothing else, it's been worth it just to see Ian Brown tear into a Daily Mail journalist.

Whilst you ponder whether Cressa will be joining the band for the reunion gigs, listen to this demo version of 'Made Of Stone' from May 1988. The song and arrangement pretty much in place. The magic has definitely happened even if it has yet to receive John Leckie's magic touch.

Enjoy.

Download The Stone Roses 'Made Of Stone (Demo)' (genius, indie mp3) (Box.net)

The Screaming Trees 'Tangiers' (Single Version/MbAaIsNsLlIiNnEe) (Native, 1988)

Dark-edged fusion of groove, beat and indie sensibility. Very Sheffield/Fon Studios.

Not to be confused with proto-Grunge rockers on Sub Pop - featuring Mark Lanegan - who were probably active around the same time.

The Screaming Trees were a mysterious Sheffield duo who luxuriated in the Fon/Sheffield sound of dance crossover beats - following in the footsteps of Age Of Chance, Heaven 17, The Human League, Chakk, Pop Will Eat Itself, Gene and Jim Are Into Shakes and similarly forward-thinking indie types who fell in love with the tyranny of the beat.

The main version is a catchy dancefloor groove based around a horn sample and some tight sequencer work. The MbAaIsNsLlIiNnEe remix is more skeletal and rocks a Janet Jackson sample. Subtly ground-breaking stuff that paved the way for New FADs, World Of Twist et al.

Download The Screaming Trees 'Tangiers (Single Version)' (indie dance crossover mp3) (Mediafire)

Download The Screaming Trees 'Tangiers (MbAaIsNsLlIiNnEe)' (indie dance crossover mp3) (Mediafire)

Humanoid 'Stakker Humanoid' (Westside, 1988)

Frantic, acid-infected electro classic.

This pre-Future Sound of London track by Brian Dougans is a storming cascade of beats, acid squelching, whistles, sound fx and driving energy.

Arriving on a distinctive, puttering riff, it somehow seems to arrive a full-pelt but still ratchet up the intensity the course of five incredible minutes.

I spent ages trying to track down a copy of the original 12" after mistakenly buying one of the many, inferior, remixes.

'Stakker Humanoid' is simply a classic British dance record that sits alongside FSOL's 'Papua New Guinea', 'LFO' by LFO, Bomb The Bass's 'Beat Dis', 'IOU' by Freeez and all the other records I loved before I was ready to leave the bedroom for the dancefloor...

Download Humanoid 'Stakker Humanoid' (mp3) (Mediafire)

David Sylvian 'Let The Happiness In' (Live, 1988)

Syrupy, langorous and expansive contemplation, recorded live in 1988.

'Let The Happiness In' is a brown, sombre hymn, pondering one of Sylvian's Long Dark Nights. From today's perspective, it's hard to believe it was released as a single - a fantastic 12" which came backed with the edgy funk of 'Buoy (Remix)' and the languid jazz instrumental 'Blue Of Noon'.

It processes at a stately pace, based on a simple organ motif and Sylvian's rich voice, slowly building with percussion and trumpet embellishments.

Initially true to the 'Secrets Of The Beehive' original, this live version slowly adds more layers - more intricate percussion, some gently skyscraping guitar and some of the most downbeat scat vocal improvisation you might ever hear.

Glorious.

Download David Sylvian 'Let The Happiness In (Live in Japan, 1988)' (alternative mp3) (Mediafire)

Download the complete David Sylvian 'Live in Theatre' concert over on archive:live+rare (mp3 download) (Mediafire)

Gene & Jim Are Into Shakes 'Shake (Part One)' (Rough Trade, 1988)

Sampladelic, pioneering indie-dance crossover gem from 1988.

I know nothing about Messrs. Gene and Jim and I'm pretty sure there wasn't a follow-up single, but 'Shake' is a catchy, Akai S900-powered tune that stands on its own. It fuses a four-to-the-floor beat with a slamming bassline, Batman samples, screeching guitar, a bit of Marilyn Monroe, some wicked Latin trumpet and a lush chorus.

Along with Pop Will Eat Itself, 'Shake' represents one of the parallel current in indie music in the late 1980s as dance music became an increasing influence. This hybrid of drum machine and samples followed in the wake of significant indie label hits for S'Express, Bomb The Bass (both on Mute subsidiary Rhythm King) and 4AD's 'Pump Up The Volume' by MARRS.

The other indie-dance fusion brewing, of course, was the more organic collision of euphoric, nay Ballearic, groove and indie instrumentation as evidenced by Happy Mondays, New Fast Automatic Daffodils et al.

Despite indie labels being able to rule the charts with dance crossover hits, Gene & Jim (on indie powerhouse Rough Trade) were unable to follow suit. However, their spirit lives on in the indie disco in the sky - coming up after the DJ has given Pop Will Eat Itself's 'Def Con One' another spin.

Download Gene And Jim Are Into Shakes 'Shake! (How About A Sampling, Gene?) (7" Version)' (mp3) (Box)

The Fall 'Bremen Nacht (Alternative)' (Beggars Banquet, 1988)

Extended fusion of Krautrock and boogie from the career-high 'Frenz Experiment' album.

A fusion of sax and guitar riffing is driven along by some steamhammer rhythm work. It locks into a riff and stays there with just the occasional pause to draw breath and regroup.

The track's intensity and insistence matches the spat-out words of Mark E. Smith, grooving out to over nine minutes.

Download The Fall 'Bremen Nacht (Alternative)' (mp3) (Mediafire)

The Primitives 'All The Way Down (Beat Version)' (RCA, 1988) (mp3 download)

Hearing of a new record from the reformed Primitives was something of a surprise. On rushing to Youtube to check out the new single, I find that Tracey Tracey is no longer a blonde bombshell, opting for a more demure brunette, but the sound is still perky, guitar-driven bubblegum pop.

This, in turn, sent me back to the archives for this b-side track from the 'Way Behind Me' 12". It emphasises the psyche-pop side of The Primitives that the band's name suggests (it's borrowed from the sixties British Beat group of 'Help Me' fame).

It's a organ-led take on the song, driving a swirling, frugging groove with a slight Northern Soul edge. The original is a dirge-y Velvet Underground/Jesus & Mary Chain thing and the makeover suits it well.

Download The Primitives 'All The Way Down (Beat Version)' (mp3) (Mediafire)

Hear the new Primitives single - 'Rattle My Cage' - over at Crashsite.

Various Artists 'Doing It For The Kids' (Creation Records, 1988)

This is the budget-priced compilation (15 tracks on one LP for a couple of quid!) that introduced me to the world of Creation.

From the jangle of Felt, The Jasmine Minks, early Primal Scream (All Fall Down) through the hooverphonic garage rock flavours of The Times and The Jazz Butcher to the mellower side of My Bloody Valentine with 'Cigarette In Your Bed' (wonderfully mis-titled on this release as 'Cigarette In My Bed' - details, details, boys) to the wimpy, bedwetter balladry of Emily's 'Reflect On Rye'.

'Doing It For The Kids' also introduced the other facets of Creation. Heidi Berry's plaintive Sandy Denny-influenced string-laden folk was a particular favourite. I was also introduced to Momus's bitter and twisted electro-pop here too and was a firm fan of the Tender Pervert album. The song included on DIFTKs was the majestic 'A Complete History Of Sexual Jealousy (Parts 17-24)' which sounds as utterly fantastic and depraved/deranged listening to it now as it did back then.

The track I've uploaded is the gentle, pastoral electronic ballad 'Jetstream' by Pacific. I know nothing about them and, upon investigation, the rest of their album really wasn't very good. Loved this track and this label though.

Download Pacific 'Jetstream' (mp3)

Download Momus 'A Complete History Of Sexual Jealousy (Parts 17-24)' (mp3)