Undeniably one of the most influential acts of the late
eighties/early nineties, 808 State can be credited with
being partly responsible for the explosion of the acid
house movement in the UK. Originally formed by Martin
Price, Graham Massey and ‘A Guy Called Gerald’
Simpson in the late eighties in Manchester, right on
the grounds that had seen Joy Division and New Order
flourish some years earlier, 808 State partly defined
the UK acid sound and were integrant part of the love
story between Britain and dance music.
Although Simpson left early on, the trio recorded one
of the most significant acid records of that period
in the shape of Newbuild, originally released
on Price’s Creed Records. Hailed by Richard
D. James as one of his favourite records, it was
only logical for the man to make it available once again
through his Rephlex imprint ten years later. Following
the departure of Simpson, Price and Massey recruited
Andrew Barker and Darren Partington and recorded QuadraState,
their second LP. After being snapped up by Trevor Horn’s
ZTT, home of The Art Of Noise and Frankie Goes To Hollywood,
the band went on to release the hugely successful 90,
which featured the exquisite Pacific 202, and,
a year later, Ex:El, which featured a collaboration
with New Order front man Bernard Summer. This album
also saw the beginning of the collaboration between
Massey and Björk,
the Icelandic songstress contributing vocals on two
tracks, with Massey returning the favour by producing
part of her second album. By then clearly pushed into
producing increasingly commercial records, the band
started an uneasy period following the departure of
Price after the release of Ex:El, while the
remaining three members returned with Gorgeous,
the band’s fifth album. After a four-year hiatus,
808 State reappeared with a more complex and experimental
record, Don Solaris, before celebrating their
ten years in 1998 with a compilation. By then, the band
had lost most of its aura and appeal. Yet, rumours started
to circulate about a possible re-releasing of Newbuild,
which had long been unavailable, on Rephlex, reviving
the interest in the band’s original sound. When
the album finally appeared, it was the occasion for
a handful to re-live their younger years, while the
vast majority simply were given a chance to hear this
seminal release for the first time.
Five years on, Rephlex does it again by releasing Prebuild,
a series of pre-Newbuild recordings made by
the original triumvirate circa 1988. Recently found
by Graham Massey, these recordings document the early
days of the band. Comprising studio recordings, live
radio sessions, demos recorded by Gerald Simpson and
a monumental fourteen-minute long session, Thermo Kings,
recorded at the end of a hip-hop night at the Broadwalk
Club. The album also features Massagerama and
Sex Mechanic, which the trio released as a
twelve inch on Sheffield’s Mr Modo under the name
of the Lounge Jays. All extremely rare, some never previously
released, these ten tracks provide an exhilarating insight
into the band’s early days. Whether it is trough
Simpson’s bedroom experimentations (Johhnycab,
Clonezone, Cosacosa), his collaboration
with Massey (the epic ten-and-a-half-minute opener Automatic,
and Ride) or the trio’s first experiments,
including the iridescent pulsating live performance
on Thermo Kings, this is the sound of the pre-trendy
acid movement, when initiated fans were swearing allegiance
to DJ Pierre’s Acid Trax and were dancing
all night at The Hacienda with MDMA as only fuel.
Looking back, it is impossible to find anything remotely
wrong to this record. The beats still kick arses, the
sounds are as sharp as they were intended, and the mood
is intact. Even the relative poor quality of the Thermo
Kings recording, sourced from cassette tape, contributes
to the authentic feel of the track and of the album.
This is the work of a band who had found their niche;
the sound of a band before they got anywhere near reaching
so-called maturity; the sound of three lads from ‘up
North’ who were making music as if their lives
depended on it. Not just a companion to Newbuild,
Prebuild is even more essential as it documents
not only the formative sessions of a band, but also
the birth of a movement which, fifteen years later,
still feels as one of the most important music mutations
since the rise of rock’n’roll and hip-hop.
4.9/5 |
