Thursday, March 28, 2024

Reese piece


 "Rumblizm: In Praise of the Reese Bass" - an ode to one of the classic rave sounds, originally unleashed by Kevin Saunderson for the Reese track "Just Want Another Chance". 

By Matt at Lost Tempo 

"While it is comparatively simple to reproduce, the Reese bass sounds less like the product of an instrument than that of a cataclysm. The wave forms seem unstable. The vibrations are not so much heard as felt, the aftermath of a distant earthquake. Even on airpods, you feel it. But it is meant to be felt through a sound system in a club...."








The Reese Weapon - the Casio CZ-5000 synth


"Just Want Another Chance" pops up in Futuromania as it happens, in a piece on acid house:

"On Reese’s ‘Just Want Another Chance’, Detroit producer Kevin Saunderson sets a guttural, Stephen Mallinder-style monologue of desire over the spookiest of Residents synth-drones – an ectoplasmic bassline much slower than the drum track."  

The original 12-inch, which I picked up in New York in early '88 - in a record shop that was half rap, half house -  has three slightly different versions:  all with the same title, undifferentiated by any  subtitle. 





On the flip there's five raw "Rhythm Tracks", almost like grimestrumental "MC tools" but presumably designed as DJ tools.






At the time of Reese, there was no such thing as "Reese Bass"  - it was just one spooky track in a swarm of sinister acid house tunes.

It became "Reese Bass" when it was revived by the junglists, specifically the Man like Ray Keith


I wonder if he sampled it or recreated in on the Casio CZ-5000?

But I don't remember the phrase "Reese Bass" being talked of reverently until this DJ Trace remix of the T-Power track.





Then it propagated and for a while it seemed like you could hear it everywhere. 


Matt follows its half-lives in 2step and dubstep and beyond. 

He also points to this piece by John Hull on the history of the Reese bass. 


Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Thursday, March 21, 2024

RIP Splash (aka Daz Ellis aka Undercover Agent)

A soulja has faaaaaaaaaallen 

Splash aka Daz Ellis aka Darren Ellis is immortal for this


Impossible levels of personal thrills attained with the appearance - at the fade in this very clever fan video - of Ari Up hollering "Babylon lovers", sampled from "Luv Und Romance"off of Cut, the second album I ever bought. 

The full-length version


On some days this Splash tune is right up there with Sacred's "Do It Together" as the Anthem of the Era for me

Now Daz has gone to 



Not as familiar with the work he did under his other - main - identity Undercover Agent, although I daresay I'd recognise most of the tunes from hearing them out at raves or on the pirates. 

This one deserves love just for capturing a buzzphrase of back in the day


It always tickled me that MCs would go "ooh gosh" or "oh-mi-gosh" - seemed like some kind of weird throwback to the days of Just William or Jennings & Derbyshire. 

This one pretty ruff


Nice squeaky sped-up raggamuffin on this one




Daz Ellis started his own pirate station, Cyndicut FM 100.4 FM.



Then started his own label Splash Recordings which soon merged with Juice Records. 


Here's a playlist of much of Daz's releases