VA - Going Out of My Head; Adventures On the Indie Dancefloor 1995-1999 (4 X CDs)

INDIE

VA - Going Out of My Head; Adventures On the Indie Dancefloor 1995-1999 (4 X CDs)

After the Madchester scene of the late '80s merged neo-psychedelic indie pop with acid house, the crossover between club culture and alternative rock reached new heights during the second half of the '90s, when journalists touted "electronica" as the next big thing. Going Out of My Head: Adventures on the Indie Dancefloor 1995-1999 attempts to anthologize the peak era of big beat, trip-hop, and alternative dance, giving space to DJ/producer acts and dance-influenced rock bands as well as rare remixes previously tucked away on CD singles. Compared to most Cherry Red compilations, this one amusingly seems to contain a higher percentage of songs that were actually hits, including U.K. chart-toppers such as the Prodigy's "Breathe" and Norman Cook's remix of Cornershop's "Brimful of Asha," and material that was omnipresent on compilations and soundtracks of the era, such as the Urbal Beats series, The Saint, and Astralwerks' label samplers. Regardless, the set is still a fun trip back to a time when it truly felt like something new and innovative was happening in music. The Chemical Brothers are only present as remixers (their mix of Bomb the Bass' "Bug Powder Dust" sounds like a prototype for the massive "Block Rockin' Beats"), while Fatboy Slim is represented by remixes as well as the classic rock subversion "Going Out of My Head." Excellent selections from Bentley Rhythm Ace and Indian Ropeman are big beat tomfoolery at its finest, while cuts by Howie B and Jimi Tenor are a bit more on the vibey, boutique-friendly side.

While plenty of remixes of hugely popular bands like Blur, Radiohead, Supergrass, and Skunk Anansie are present, the compilers also included a few original tracks by groups who seemed to be slightly influenced by dance music but didn't fully embrace it, from eclectic weirdos Super Furry Animals to more traditionalist rock bands like Ocean Colour Scene and Shed Seven. The only drum'n'bass inclusions are relative obscurities by Under the Honeytunnel (an indie rock band who briefly dabbled in the genre) and Future Loop Foundation (aka Mark Barrott, who became better known for making downtempo and Balearic disco after the '90s). The third disc ends with the Motiv8 remix of Dubstar's sublime hit "Stars," then the fourth disc seems to focus more on reflective, after-hours selections than the party-friendly first three (though the mix of Tricky's Public Enemy cover "Black Steel" included here is actually more aggressive and guitar-heavy than the version on Maxinquaye). Serving as a comedown soundtrack, there's trippy downtempo from FSOL, a dubbed-out Paul Weller remix, Hooverphonic's "2Wicky" (still one of the best non-British trip-hop songs ever made), and Lamb's "Gorecki," a breathtakingly beautiful song that would've been wildly out of place if it was sequenced earlier in the set. Finally, the compilation ends with the Aloof's symphonic procession "The Last Stand," which received frequent BBC Radio 1 airplay on the day of Princess Diana's death -- a fascinating, somewhat unexpected bit of historical context for a sobering post-rave track. (AMG review by Paul Simpson)

==========================================================

ALL 

OR

ALL 

===========================================================

Track lists

CD1

01 Charlatans - Nine Acre Dust (Chemical Brothers remix) 6:29

02 Blur - On Your Own (Crouch End Broadway mix) 3:35

03 Bomb the Bass & Justin Warfield - Bug Powder Dust (Chemical Brothers mix) 7:02

04 Supergrass - Sun Hits the Sky (Bentley Rhythm Ace remix) 5:38

05 Dub Pistols - Cyclone 3:35

06 Audioweb - Bankrobber 3:42

07 Alabama 3 - Speed of the Sound of Loneliness 4:33

08 Black Grape - The Reverend Black Grape 5:13

09 Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground (Perfecto mix) 6:06

10 Prodigy - Breathe 5:35

11 Fluke - Atom Bomb 5:42

12 Bassheads - Cut Le Roc 5:21

13 CJ Bolland - It Ain’t Gonna Be Me 3:47

14 Leftfield - Phat Planet 5:25

15 Fatboy Slim - Going Out of My Head 5:16

CD2

01 Death in Vegas - Aisha 3:53

02 Super Furry Animals - Wherever I Lay My Phone (That’s My Home) 5:29

03 Indian Ropeman - Dog in the Piano (dirty edit) 4:32

04 Bentley Rhythm Ace - Bentley's Gonna Sort You Out 5:06

05 Pierre Henry - Psyché Rock (Malpaso mix by Fatboy Slim) 7:29

06 Gomez - Whippin’ Picadilly 3:13

07 All Seeing I - Beat Goes On 3:32

08 Howie B - Who's Got the Bacon? 4:26

09 Under the Honeytunnel - Electro-Magnetic 6:17

10 Moloko - Fun for Me 5:10

11 Basement Jaxx - Red Alert (Jaxx club mix) 6:23

12 Wildchild - Renegade Master (radio edit) 4:02

13 Rest Assured - Treat Infamy (12" club mix) 9:14

14 Leftfield - Song of Life 7:03

CD3

01 Shed Seven - She Left Me on Friday 3:30

02 Terrorvision - Tequila (Mint Royale Shot) 4:09

03 Cornershop - Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook remix) 7:37

04 Lo Fidelity Allstars - Blisters on My Brain 6:47

05 Space - Neighbourhood (Live It! club mix) 5:08

06 Arthur - Lose Your Mind (Skint remix) 7:01

07 Orbital - The Saint 4:33

08 Jimi Tenor - Walkie Talkie 3:01

09 Future Loop Foundation - Conditions for Living (Headz Down edit) 6:27

10 Ocean Colour Scene - Falling to the Floor 3:57

11 My Life Story - 12 Reasons Why I Love Her 3:45

12 Sleeper - Statuesque (The Boxed Off mix) 6:10

13 James - Waltzing Along (Havin' it Rock Opera mix) 6:36

14 Embrace & Wil Malone - One Big Family (Perfecto mix) 6:50

15 Dubstar - Stars (Motiv8 radio mix) 3:58

CD4

01 Tricky & Martina Topley-Bird - Black Steel (Been Caught Steeling mix) 6:00

02 Ceasefire - Trickshot 6:55

03 Babylon Zoo - Spaceman (Arthur Meets the Spaceman mix) 5:56

04 Skunk Anansie - Brazen (Weep) (Dreadzone remix) 9:22

05 Radiohead - Planet Telex (Karma Sunra mix) 5:24

06 Future Sound of London - My Kingdom 5:51

07 Paul Weller - Kosmos (Lynch Mob Bonus Beats Full Version/Lynchmob Beats mix) 7:04

08 Hooverphonic - 2 Wicky 4:46

09 Morcheeba - Part of the Process 4:26

10 Lamb - Gorecki 6:31

11 Catatonia - Road Rage (Midfield General's Shootout mix) 6:49

12 Aloof - The Last Stand 9:08

=============================================================

=============================================================

Music weaves itself into the fabric of our emotions, dances through the corridors of memory, and whispers to the soul of who we are. Sharing these stories deepens the connection, turning the experience into something timeless and profound.

=============================================================

=============================================================