Bomb The Bass - Future Chaos

Bomb the Bass is back, but put away that smiley face: this is no nostalgia trip. With Future Chaos, Tim Simenon revamps his long-running project to produce a record that's fresher than anyone might have expected from an outfit that got its start in the '80s. Tickling tweeters and pushing the limits of low-end, the album hovers confidently on the cusp between futurism and vintage, boasting the sort of confident song writing that's a rarity anywhere, much less in electronic music. Simenon calls it 'electronic music with soul', but that barely begins to describe it. At once lush and chilly, intimate and alien, Future Chaos is a synth-rich album boasting guest vocals from Jon Spencer, Mark Lanegan, Fujiya & Miyagi's David Best, Toob and Paul Conboy.

It's been 21 years since Bomb the Bass' Beat Dis helped usher in the era of sampling, acid house and DJ culture. It's easy to forget how monumental the single was. Going straight to number two in the UK charts, the song's success quickly propelled Simenon from underground DJ to in-demand knobsman. Long before Marc Ronson or Timbaland, he was the go-to guy for the Midas Touch. In those early years, he co-produced Neneh Cherry's stone classic Buffalo Stance and Seal's Crazy—not a bad run for an upstart fresh out of sound engineering school. Throughout the '90s, Bomb the Bass continued to blaze trails with the classic Bug Powder Dust, the trip-hop blueprint Winter In July and the dubby Clear. All the while, Simenon racked up production and remix credits for acts like Depeche Mode, David Bowie, Curve, Björk and Massive Attack. Just as important were his many collaborations with a surprising range of artists: J. Saul Kane, Jah Wobble, Sinéad O'Connor, Hector Zazou, On-U Sound—even actress Minnie Driver turned up in the mix.
page << 1 2 3 >>