We've had a run of dub posts this week so I thought Weatherall Remix Friday should follow suit with the Sabres Of Paradise remixes of Bomb The Bass from 1994, Mr Weatherall's long standing dub interest and pursuits finding fully realised expression in a pair of remixes.
The Sabres Main Mix is a seven minute deep dive into some heavy dub/ downtempo action, wobbly synths and reggae vocal (supplied by Spikey Tee) followed by all manner of echo and delay, rimshots, crawling rhythms, hisses, deep bass, swirling FX, melodica and the smell of smoke thick in the air.
Darkheart (Sabres Of Paradise Main Mix)
The Second Mix, a minute longer, does that classic Weatherall trick of dubbing the dub, stripping things down and back further. The Second Mix, vocal free and more abstract, has much in common with the sounds Sabres Of Paradise were conjuring up for their own material at this point- it could easily fit onto Haunted Dancehall.
Darkheart (Sabres Of Paradise Second Mix)
Darkheart was from Bomb The Bass' third album, the trip hop/ downtempo/ hip hop sounds of Clear. It was an album led by the single Bug Powder Dust which caused a bit of a stir- it was single of the year at Select magazine. The Darkheart 12" came out on a major label (4th And Broadway, owned by Island) and as a result is fairly easy to find today and very cheap, unlike much of the Weatherall back catalogue. In 1988 Bomb The Bass mainman Tim Simenon did much to shape what acid house would sound and look like, not least the smiley face (borrowed from Alan Moore's Watchmen comic) which adorned the cover of his Beat Dis single, a genuine late 80s classic and game changing record. But that's something for another day.
Two of my favourite Sabres mixes, full stop. Hard to decide between the pair of them so I'm glad you included them both. I had the CD rather than the 12" and there is an additional, non-Sabres remixed track called Dressed In Black which is pretty special.
ReplyDeleteTim Simenon's run of Bomb The Bass albums is superb.
I don't know these so looking forward to them.
ReplyDeleteYou might be interested in some Weatherall vinyl I've just put on ebay. Sadly it's no longer viable to keep them. They are The Two Lone Swordsmen; Swimming Not Skimming, The Swordsmen And A Being, and the Blood Sugar; Levels double 12". I hope they go to a good home.
Got all those Kev, good luck- hope they go to a good home as you say.
ReplyDeleteI’ve just been looking back through the archives. You’ve put some amazing stuff together. I see it everyday, sometimes play a youtube bid or a track here and there, download a lot of the mixes but never get around to playing them cos they’re on pc not phone. I’m looking forward to really getting into them as I should soon have more time on my hands. Be prepared for comments! And thanks for your time, taste and knowledge.
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