Remedy - Basement Jaxx

So. I'm white dot bloke am I? What kind of stupid system is this? I'm not impressed with Ciao at the moment, what with crappy pay systems, derogatory community ratings, etc. but I was bored, so I decided to put another opinion on the site. So I looked through my music collection. Because my music collection rules. Apart from my Limp Bizkit CD, but the less I say about that, the better. But sifting through my albums, some of which are scattered across ...
...And remembering how much I liked it last time I listened to it, I put it on. And somehow, after about a year of not listening to it, it sounds even better than it did before. Perhaps this is a result of the sad state the music industry is in today, which has forced me to lower my standards musically. But one thing that is for sure is that this album is a classic. Everyone should own this. And if you don't own it, why not?

The Basement ... more

So. I'm white dot bloke am I? What kind of stupid system is this? I'm not impressed with Ciao at the moment, what with crappy pay systems, derogatory community ratings, etc. but I was bored, so I decided to put another opinion on the site. So I looked through my music collection. Because my music collection rules. Apart from my Limp Bizkit CD, but the less I say about that, the better. But sifting through my albums, some of which are scattered across the floor unfortunately, I found Basement Jaxx's debut album, 'Remedy'. And remembering how much I liked it last time I listened to it, I put it on. And somehow, after about a year of not listening to it, it sounds even better than it did before. Perhaps this is a result of the sad state the music industry is in today, which has forced me to lower my standards musically. But one thing that is for sure is that this album is a classic. Everyone should own this. And if you don't own it, why not?

The Basement Jaxx boys, Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton, hail from Brixton, renowned for its multicultural and vibrant community. And this influence is evident in their music. 'Remedy' contains a diverse range of styles, from house, techno, and garage to reggae, jazz and even classical. And while what you hear of the Basement Jaxx on the radio is great, it is not really an accurate representation of them musically. While their singles are designed to party to, their album tracks reveal a darker, more subversive side to the Jaxx, and this side is just as good, if not even better. But then, that's just me. There is more than enough to satisfy those who aren't into that side.

The album begins with an explosion before merging into the opening chords of 'Rendez-Vu'. Commercial it may be, with it's 4/4 beat and vocodered vocals by Felix himself. OK, vocodering is not exactly original anymore - in fact it's been flogged to death by various acts, including THAT tack (I mean track) by Cher, which by all rights should have destroyed the use of this effect that she had defiled so evilly. However, blending into Spanish guitars and synths, it sounds fantastic.

But from this track, we move to the Jaxx's debut single, 'Yo Yo', which is even better than the first track, and is probably more representative of the album as a whole. Wonderfully dark lyrics and a trippy, jumping beat merged with quite abrasive synths in the chorus, this track is absolutely jaw-dropping, and is one of the highlights of the album.

Another track, and another single - this time it's 'Jump and Shout' - another great track, with Slarta John on vocals, who has also worked with Hatiras in the past. His fast, reggae-type vocals add an urgent edge to the song, which also has a slightly Arabic tinge to it (especially in the chorus, listen to it if you don't believe me), which sounds like a terrible combination, but isn't.

'U Can't Stop Me' is a more downbeat, dark track., with Yvonne John-Lewis (I assume not related to that department store bloke) on vocals this time. The spoken lyrics are probably some of the darkest on the album, and with the chopped up break-beat added, this is yet another excellent track.

A thirty second 'Jaxxalude' follows this, which although is nothing to write home about, is a good introduction to the single which probably got the Jaxx into the public eye. This is personally not one of my favourite tracks, possibly because I've heard it on the radio so many times, but 'Red Alert' is certainly an excellent hybrid of house and garage which goes off on so many tangents that it is difficult to keep up with its pace. The track merges straight into a 'Jazzalude' which basically does what it says on the tin. However, the following track, 'Always Be There', takes the garage vibe introduced in the previous track further. By all rights, I shouldn't like this, but 'Always Be There' demonstrates how garage should be produced if I had my own way, with sweeping strings, stabs of synths, and a deep, growling bass line. This track also contains elements of jazz, which, although isn't my cup of tea, really adds to how relaxing the song is. Although quite fast paced, it is not the type of song I would particularly want to dance to more than I would want to lie down and let the song sweep over me.

After a 'Sneakalude' we are introduced to the greatest track on this album. One of the samples one this track you may recognise, but it is used to such powerful effect on this claustrophobic, dark, sensual, rather scary track. The track builds up to an almost unlistenable frenzy of vocal samples, orgasmic groans, and pulsating beats, then dies away to allow you to relax again before gradually building up again, pumping up the tension until it becomes almost unbearable, before it is killed unceremoniously. Put simply, this is one of the greatest pieces of music ever created. Which makes it a shame that it has to be followed by the weakest track on the album. 'Bingo Bango' is certainly not a poor track by any means, but the rather hedonistic vibe created by this Latin influenced track is not really in keeping with the rest of the album. Having said that, it is still more imaginative than any other track that was around at the time that used the same Latin influence, and so deserves respect. In a way, and pardon me for sounding cheesy, but it's like having a carnival in your room.

Another interlude precedes the final three tracks, which appear to be designed to calm listeners down after the rush created by the previous tracks. 'Stop 4 Love', the first of the three, is also the best of the three, with a beat which gets played around with and manipulated over keyboards and sweeping strings. This is almost a full orchestra type of track, and while designed as a chill-out track, still manages to be interesting without losing any of its immense beauty.

Did I just say that the last three tracks of the album are designed to chill you out? Scrub that. 'Don't Give Up' is a monster of a track. While you certainly can't dance to the track, you certainly wouldn't want to try to relax to it. It is certainly an uncomfortable listen, with its persistent, distorted bass line and faint, tortured vocals, which suddenly burst into screams during the harsh, abrasive chorus. According to the CD sleeve, these lyrics were performed by Felix and Simon themselves, which I find a little disturbing, seeing as before then, I was under the impression that they were female vocals. The darkest track on the album, this is almost gothic in tone, and is another favourite track of mine. The final track, 'Being With U' is the opposite of the track that it follows. It is a track that you can truly relax to. The vocals, performed by Felix on the track are reminiscent of Prince's at places. All in all, it contributes to the song being a great ending to an outstanding record.

I am not normally a huge fan of the genre of dance music this album fits into, but when the music produced is as brilliant as this, how can I not love it? The greatest thing about the Basement Jaxx's work, especially on this album, is that elements are introduced which by all rights, should not have been introduced under any circumstances, and yet they still manage to make it sound great. Effects are just placed wherever they feel like, in contrast to many dance acts, who add effects where they think would be the normal place to put them. As a result, the Jaxx's music sounds so much more lively, energetic, and interesting than other dance acts. Nothing gets predictable on 'Remedy' from start to finish.

One last thing: if you are thinking of buying a Basement Jaxx album - buy this album, and not their follow-up, 'Rooty', which is a pile of pigeon excrement in comparison. Let me tell you how disappointed I was when I discovered that Basement Jaxx, like so many other music acts, had contracted that horrible crappy-follow-up-to-great-album syndrome. Sad. 

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