I'm not too sure why no review has been entered here on discogs before now, as this is possibly the best hardcore break-beat track of the era. It is a rare example of how to expertly fuse together jungle style beats with pounding 4 /4 rhythms and superb rushing sounds. Of course it had something to do with the UK hardcore legend Slipmatt (who else?). The track features the vocal sample from Janet Jackson as mentioned above, but more importantly fuses manic hardcore break-beats with lush pads and piano samples. The main piano line is lifted straight from Urban Hype's - Trip to Trumpton (you knew you'd heard it before somewhere!!) This is Matt at the very top of his game and I've heard this record take the roof of countless hardcore raves, generally with him at the controls. "D-a-r-k-n-e-s-s".

Who better to mix your old skool cd than Mat? I cant think of anyone with more credibility in the rave scene. This 18 track cd is perfectly mixed (maybe a little too perfect??). I dont think I've heard any old skool mix timed to perfection, like this is. Rock to the Max is amazing every time, as is Nasty - Upside. Acen's Close Your Eyes is still as groundbreaking and Slipmatt even throws an exclusive, Make a Move into the blender, which is classic SL2 all the way. Not content with this he re edits Music's So Wonderful too. His own SMD 1 features also, which covers Bizzare inc. Mat then twists the mix up with some Tango & Ratty, always a killer in the classic set. An utterly jumping mix cd you should hear if you like it hardcore. I'm not sure if it was mixed on a set of Technics though, as it has some effects and the timings are utterly astounding, saying that though this is what he does better than anyone else.

5 incredible remixes of bug kann's classic. All have their strong points. Danny's (Sonz Of A Loop-De-Loop) is a downbeat breaks bomb. Foul Play turn in another fast paced jungle rave remix. The Prodigy turn it into a hardcore techno rush fest (what else??)
Sadly however many of these vinyl (maybe all - Ive had a fair few now??) have a pressing flaw which means small irremovable lumps are present on most of the tracks, so the vinyl has loud pops on at least 1 part of each track. Some are better than others, so just pot luck form the pressing plant really. Still, an astounding set of mixes

Well if your looking for two jungle anthems, pressed onto heavyweight vinyl then this is the vinyl for you. Just 4 U has deep resonant bass and crisp beats and of course is still cool as f*ck! D Livin's why? is clear also, it sounds very similar to my original copy but quite a bit heavier on the lower end frequencies.

I'm not sure where this booty originates from but its much better than most copies / represses out there.

Another vinyl masterpiece cut from the prolific studio of DJ Tango. 'My Mind is Going' is a good enough effort featuring 4/4 beats spiced up with snappy breaks. The first breakdown brings in a dark reese style bass. Unfortunately the track is let down by 2 different sets of poor rave stabs on both the second and third breakdowns. It of course features 'HAL' from 2001 for the vocal sample. 'Got to Release' however is a different class altogether, again sharp tight break beats kick off along with some relaxed hardcore stabs, then a killer reese bass. The main break comes with nice fast paced piano and vocal snippets. The track then builds itself up and down taking elements in and out to generate the familiar hardcore techno sound of the incredible 92 / 93 era. Way ahead of its time!

This the release that put Alex onto the drum and bass map. I bumped into him outside Speed in London one evening, a little drunk and talked about the cool new jazzy side of drum and bass (cringe!). Anyway, an excellent release. "I need your love" is a cool jazz fused roller with saxophone, vocals and of course nice jazzy chords. But its the flip "Basic Principles" which made this release stand out from the rest. Some nice soft pads layered over seriously rolling two step beats and a lovely deep bass-line. Add a simple three note piano and vocal sample 'hold on' and so becomes a D and B masterpiece.

I picked up a copy of this re-release vinyl, unfamiliar with the original release. The 3 tracks are all high quality breakbeat rave, 'fascination' however leans towards the gabba hardcore spectrum with high speed compressed 4/4 over low fi breakbeats. I was very disappointed with the audio quality however. The tracks sound good during breakdowns and intros but as soon as the maniacal beats get going, it all falls apart, the audio then sounds like its been recorded through a cheap £100 dj mixer from Tandy (remember them?).

Darkage is one of the finest examples of hardcore rave evolving into jungle / drum & bass. A prototype for jungle, it was a rave and radio anthem for most of 1993. Stuttering beats start the track off, these are quickly backed up with a simple but devastating bassline which defines the whole track. The intro also contains vocals "and everyday .... and every night..." repeated. Ravey stabs and noises then join in the fun until the tune really 'drops' with a ragga "jungalist" sample. Superb. Axis is a decent enough track and would be recognisable to most who were raving in 93 especially in the South / London. It just suffers from Darkage being so god damn good.