Layo and Bushwacka-Love Story

Ronan, you are making me desperately desire this song.

I wanted to make this single of the week for the student newspaper, but I was told I couldn't do that, as it was more for the "Clubbed" section of the paper. So we ended up with AM60 as single of the week. Still, it's one of the greatest things I've heard this year, bar none. It's what IDM would sound like in a world where everything was good with life.

Oh, and what is that vocal sample? Is it the same guy sampled on the Roots Manuva album?

DOWNLOAD IT. YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO.

There are so many good tunes out at the moment I don't know whether to laugh or go clubbing.

Another one for you Dan, Bass Cowboy, I would die 4 U. It samples Prince and is a big loved up super cheesy masterpiece.

That's really lame of them Dom, I mean anyone could love "Love Story", it's crossover smash written all over it.

no it doeasn't sample prince it's a cover. it's someone doing a prince impression on a cheese-factory cover of the purple rain track. the *nerve*.

Hmmm somehow I ended up with a free promo of this that I was going to sell before listening to it because the band has such a stupid freaking name. But now I shall listen to it instead.

isnt this based around the bassline from Mongoloid by Devo?

It's based around "Mongoloid" and it's the feel good hit of the summer? I've got to hear this...

My weblog is one of the few websites to actually mention that the Layo & Bushwacka - Night Works album is due for release on July 1st on XL.

Everyone should buy it ! If will be for 2002 Summer what Felix Da Housecat album was for Summer 2001 - boy Ewing catch on early this time !

A big bright epic summmer luxurious dance album.

Some of the new Layo & Bushwacka tracks remind me of the excellent The Aloof.

It might be the bassline from that song, it might be.

Ronan, did you ever actually get a copy of Low Life? It's aceness incarnate - the best moments ("Spooky", "Dead Man Walking", "Deep South") are very much in that vein of aceness typified by Jon Carter's 7 Live mix (which is great, thanks for the recommendation BTW) - awesome house/breakbeat/ electro/miami bass/dub mash-ups.

(and did anyone ever read my review of it???)

I was surprised by how oddly, fantastically disjointed "Love Story" is - frigid electroid --> tribalistic stuff --> lush bluesy deep house. Dunno if it beats "Deep South" in that final regard, but since "Deep South" is, like, one of my favourite things ever such doubts are hardly significant.

Tim, the best news is that Jon Carter has a new mix album coming out this week on Bugged Out. Apparently it's Brazilian tinged house. That's the blurb anyway. Oddly it's not been around work yet, I asked about it though to no avail. I think "Work" by Masters at Work is on it.

It's odd, noone REALLY seems to know who Jon Carter is, and I imagine people think he's one thing or another without ever really being sure. Jockey Slut seem to revere him a little but noone else. And as far as I can see he's the most interesting house DJ around. It's very odd.

obv. though Jon Carter's grebtness is reflected gloria via. Ronnie Richards' "Missing You (Jaxx Wild Dub)" which is the awesomest thing ever in the history of awesome things.

I have a blog entry I've been meaning to write about that mix actually.

(also Layo & Bushwacka! song from new album to download now 'cos it being fab: "Sleepy Language" - not very dancefloor choonish though).

i feel dumb now. i downloaded this a few months ago, listened to it once or twice, thought "oh that's pleasant", and then forgot about it. but now listening to it thru your ears i can hear the greatness... i especially love the stuttering vocal bit near the end, you're right it's very rave-y. could you call this stuff nu-rave? is there much of it around?

Yeah actually I think there is something of an old skool revival going on. I mean there's definitely a swing from subtle housey stuff to big sweeping anthems. X-Press 2, Underworlds new one when it comes out, Bass Cowboy. Could probably think of more if I put my mind to it. All the lush pianos and big synth things were kind of no go areas for a while but boy do they sound nice now.

Is that (excuse my club ignorance) in any way connected to the commercial downfall of dance music in Britain at the moment?

Er....amateur journo Ronan says: It could have something to do with the old guard of crossover dance kind of falling by the wayside. Chems make an album which is good but not tremendous, Orbital the same, Underworld have long absence, Leftfield split up.

Ahem has Ronan been reading the competition today, the exact same comments are on Muzik page 14 !

[by the way: New Underworld album tentatively called: A Hundred Days off - due late September]

No but if so then I rock!

Tim's Review! Freaky Trigger: spotting stars first! (well, Tim does...)

New Muzik out today including a review of Layo & Bushwacka!’s brilliant new album. YO GET DOWN THE NEWSAGENT NOW!

RONAN!

Have you heard the awesome Bushwacka! Remix of "Love Story" yet? I hope on the album they loop the original and the remix together like they did for "Dead Man Walking" on Low Life, as they complement eachother perfectly.

No but I'll download it later possibly. The last Bushwacka remix I heard was that Billie Jean one which was good enough.

Too early for me to know how it'll last, but right now I'm with Ronan all the way. I bought it the day it came out, and I love it.

Samples: yes to Mongoloid, but there is also Nina Simone's Rags And Old Iron, and the excellent Tim Deluxe remix also uses Capt. Beefheart's Yellow Brick Road!

The Billie Jean remix is soooo beautiful and simple and very understated. I love how the last 3 minutes or so is just the straight- up original song.

That Tim Deluxe single isn't half bad either.

VIVA BUGGED OUT comes out on Monday. I have waited almost 2 years for Jon Carter to release another mix. Finally.

wow. can't believe how passionate this discussion is. had to review the new album and played it about a dozen times and it just does so absolutely little to my ears. weird.

"Samples: yes to Mongoloid, "

THIS is what has stopped me from liking this song, because i love Devo and ALL i can hear is Mongoloid.

Should it alarm anybody that perpetual whipping boy James Lavelle is championing the house/breaks scene? His recent mixes are heavy on Layo+Bushwacka, FC Kahuna and lots of 2 Lone Swordsmen type dub house. Certain dance ayatollahs have claimed that attention from the "Mowax/West London crowd" is the kiss of death.

haha, i've twigged as to why i ignored this: i downloaded it on the same day as vitalic's 'la rock 01'

i am disappointed with this, i was expecting something a lot better. its quite...nothingy. its alright, but, no, i don't get it

I should probably admit the Tim Deluxe remix is the one I thought was the original and vice versa.

But Shakedown-"At Night" might be better, I'm not sure.

I downloaded it on the same day as Vitalic-La rock 01

Understandable, when I went to see Dave Angel a few months ago he played that and it was like that part in the Shawshank Redemption with the opera music, god what a tune, how can so much bass and just one loop bring so much happiness.

Yeah, I'm in the same camp as Gareth. Whats the big deal here? I mean it's not a bad track by any means, i just fail to see whats so special about it. "La rock '01" tears my head off though.

We need a system for posting tracks a la stirmonster's suggestion. say I.

Shakedown beat L&B, but that's because "At Night" is the best thing ever. I've been playing it practically every morning when I wake up for the last two weeks.

What I like about "Love Story" though, and Layo & Bushwacka! generally, is how they're one of the few (but increasingly common, thankfully) dance groups who are at once Mixmag- certified dancefloor heroes and yet have a very open and expansive approach, rather than being hedged in two a very small confine of "chunky dark tech funk breaks" or the like (eg. they're much more broadminded and multitalented than Plump DJs, who are probably the closest well-known act stylistically).

I'm aware that stylistic openness often becomes annoying eclecticism, and sometimes L&B go down that route to their detriment (eg. the weak moments on the first album) but generally they avoid it, and so they're one of the few acts who potentially render that stripe of "safe" dancefloor stuff vaguely surprising or exciting. I like "Love Story" because it doesn't sound like what I was expecting from them, and I'm sure there'll be other surprises on the album, and I'm reasonably confident that it will all tie in well together. It probably sounds much stronger in that context than it might as a standalone dance track.

(Y'all still need to hear "Deep South", though).

My brother read ILM for the first time and said I need to hear Deep South too, so he played it for me the next morning.

Shakedown is possibly better though. Tim do you know the remix that says something like "she wants it like no other"? It's a good song in its own right.

Yeah, that's Mousse T's Feel Much Better Remix, which is most pleasingly brutralist (that bassline! The speaker-shredding vocal distortion!). The moroderesque Alan Braxe Remix is also excellent, although I wish it included a bit more of the original's vocals.

Actually Ronan I lie. The mix you're referring to is the Kid Creme Funksta Remix, which although good is only the third best of the remixes. So get on it and track down the other versions.

Kid Creme's remixes tend to be really good. He did some fucking wicked stuff with Thrill Me by Junior Jack, basically took one or two elements of it and changed the whole thing.

MERCY!

Tim have you heard DJD Presents Hydraulic Dogs-Shake It Baby (Junior Jack Mix).

It's like a Prince being fucked by the Daft Punk robots and then obviously sort of made into a Junior Jack track but it's got the most amazing vocal crescendo, superb.