2 February 2008
10. Rage – Run To You
When reviewing songs you first heard when you were eleven, ignorance is always going to be a factor. Arriving fresh at an anonymous song, with only a narrow set of musical experiences to draw from or be prejudiced by, can be useful in determining a true first impression. However there’s always the worry that e.g. the song is actually a metaphor for the singer’s love of killing babies with axes. The fear of the unknown! more »
katstevens in FT • 6 Comments
25 February 2008
11. SL2 – On A Ragga Tip
Last week, I was told in no uncertain terms that I was not to play ‘On A Ragga Tip’ during my set at a certain excellent clubnight this Saturday. more »
katstevens in FT • 10 Comments
25 March 2008
12. Liquid – Sweet Harmony
I mentioned in the introduction that my sister made me this tape whilst she was at university, and I had very little idea as to what ’student life’ entailed other than making me mixtapes and never having any money. Did she ever find herself hugging random dudes on the dancefloor, or hallucinating giant rotating pineapples in a field somewhere in Northamptonshire*? more »
katstevens in FT • 4 Comments
2 May 2008
13. Urban Hype – Trip To Trumpton
My glow-in-the-dark alarm clock was usually set for 6.45am on Saturday mornings, earlier than on a weekday. Sleep matters not to a seven year old, especially where television is concerned*. I would sneak downstairs without waking up my parents and hover round the telly in the kitchen for several hours, sometimes managing a continuous run up until The Chart Show at lunchtime. more »
katstevens in FT • 6 Comments
30 May 2008
14. Messiah – Temple Of Dreams
Without further ado! The engines are throbbing at the start line, ready for Richard Dawson’s Running Man evocation to wave the chequered flag: “It’s time… to start…. RUNNING!” And we’re off! ‘Temple Of Dreams’ accelerates up and up through the gears, before levelling out on a smooth cruise control in the stratosphere, burbling along whilst our in-flight hostess Liz Fraser whispers soothing lullabies. Wonderful stuff.
But hang on, haven’t we already had a track by Messiah? more »
katstevens in FT • 2 Comments
11 July 2008
15. The Prodigy – Everybody In The Place
I really don’t like rollercoasters. My childhood dreams of being an astronaut were utterly quashed after having a go on an Orbitron and instantly developing not only severe motion sickness but a firm phobia of non-uniform acceleration. Up until that point I would happy ride log flumes, runaway trains and every other stomach-churning attraction Thorpe Park had to offer. The scarier the better! These days I don’t even like going downwards in lifts. In any given theme park context I now take on the official role of The Mum Holding The Bags. more »
katstevens in FT • 7 Comments
8 September 2008
16. Kicks Like A Mule – The Bouncer
As previously mentioned, I was eager to experience the world of clubbing from an early age. But despite this pre-teen enthusiasm, I didn’t enter my first proper nightclub until I was a disappointingly legal eighteen years old. Our regular Lower School Discos not only didn’t sell intoxicating substances but were horrendously uncool to actually dance at (unless it was with Andrew Tomlinson – and I had zero chance of managing that). more »
katstevens in FT • 2 Comments
28 September 2008
17. Ratpack – Searchin’ For My Rizla
“I am the magnificent! The most prettiest! The baddest Mexicano of all times!”
A crackly Dave Barker successfully shouts down the echoing authority of The Bouncer, protesting Ratpack’s right to enter any nightclub they choose, guestlist spot or no. Pushing into the queue, MC Everson Allen rudely interrupts Barker’s ancient bragging for some of his own. “Now I
originate!” Translation: Push off grandad! more »
katstevens in FT • 8 Comments
3 October 2008
18. 2 Unlimited – The Twilight Zone
The last couple of tracks on Rave ’92 have been grounded in everyday settings – mild frustration over misplacing small items, feeling a bit dizzy, epic clubbing fail, slumping in front of kids’ telly when you get home at 5am. Songs that paint a daft picture of the things frazzled clubbers must deal with on a day to day basis. It’s all very British: muddling through life and attempting to make the best of it with good humour.
Then suddenly AWOOGA AWOOGA the warning sirens blare out and we’re blasted off into space! more »
katstevens in FT • 3 Comments
7 December 2008
19. Shut Up And Dance – I’m Ravin’ I’m Ravin’
How many times has a melody stalled on the tip of your tongue? Na-nur-na-nur NAH-ah NAAA. Dammit, what is it? Where on earth is that from? Na-nur-nah wee-woo-WEEEE-urr-wooo. You can’t remember what comes next, but if someone could *just* give you the first bit of the chorus you’d surely be able to hum the whole thing, even though you don’t know what the song’s called. Or who it’s by. more »
katstevens in FT • 4 Comments
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