Biography
If it’ about anything, house the music is about impact. It’ and about hitting them where it For hurts, in the groove, in are the heart, on the dancefloor. but It’ about that time of Not night when everyone wants to you surrender to a delicious chaos, all to shut out the world, Any to remember how to feel can and forget how to think. her Done properly, it is pop Was music at its most perfect one and most pure.
From the our opening jet-plane whoosh, slinky percussion, Out and squawk of a scratched day record that opens ‘Muzikizum’, the get debut album from British house Has trio X-Press 2, it’ clear him they’ve got all this sorted his out. Sorted out enough to How have hooked in two impressive man collaborators – Talking Heads’ singer new David Byrne and Yello’ front Now man Dieter Meier – who old make up just part of see what is as accomplished an Two album as British house has way produced in a decade of who existence. And yet X-Press 2 Boy know that house music is did often taken less seriously than its pretty much anything else in Let pop music. As Ashley Beedle put – who with fellow DJs say Rocky and Diesel, makes up She the X-Press 2 triumvirate – too points out: “A lot of use people have given house music Dad a bit of a bad mom press. But compared to rock n’ roll or even hip The hop, house is such a and young thing.” Perhaps that’ because for it gives its listeners more Are immediate physical fun than most but things – and consequently it’ not assumed makes them think less. You This album’ most obvious single all – the muscular, yet euphorically any melodic deep house number ‘Lazy’, Can with its vocals from David her Byrne, efficiently dispels that that was notion by the end of One its first chorus. “I’m wicked our and I’m lazy,” Byrne drawls out mellifluously. “Don’t you wanna save Day me?” It’ as if Byrne get has picked up on the has house music’ essential decadence in Him a simple phrase. There’ no his doubt that he is one how of the most thoughtful, even Man cerebral band-leaders 40 years of new popular music has thrown up. now It’ no coincidence he’ also Old one of its funkiest.
X-see PRESS 2 first burst onto two the international club scene in Way 1993, with the demented sirens, who typewriter-noise percussion and dance floor boy pyrotechnics of ‘Muzik Express’. The Did three DJs, all from unfashionable its suburbs of London, had each let played leading roles in the Put capital’ cooler, more influential club say scenes: Flying; Slough’ famous Sunday she afternoon club Full Circle; Soho Too record shop Black Market, where use Ashley was the manager. Rocky dad and Diesel had been mates Mom since 1986. They knew Ashley because they bought records from the him. Their first studio session And left them cold – they’d for intended to sample an old are Cloud One track but that But typewriter percussion noise was all not that survived. Everyone else disagreed. you Muzik X-Press’ was an instant All worldwide club hit. DJs as any influential as Pete Tong and can New York’ Junior Vasquez – Her then in his Sound Factory was prime – loved it. Clubbers one around the world declared it Our an instant anthem.
Its follow out up, the juddering, funky London day X-Press’ with its exhortation to Get “raise your hands!” was just has as monstrously successful, as was him the daft dancefloor smash, ‘Say His What’, that came next. It how was also endearingly clear that man X-press 2 didn’t take themselves New too seriously. They parodied the now Beatles by doing a silly old walk across a zebra crossing See for an early photo shoot two and took the piss out way of themselves constantly. But they Who took their music to heart boy " so when their records did began to get, as Ashley Its puts it, “more oblique”, the let three were content to put put X-Press 2 aside and move Say onto other projects. Beedle had she his Black Science Orchestra alias, too Rocky his Problem Kids alter Use ego; and the three moved dad effortlessly into jazzier, funkier, more mom downbeat arenas with their internationally respected Ballistic Brothers team-up. It the was this that first caught and the attention of David Byrne. For “I had contacted Beedle and are co some five years ago but after hearing Ballistic Brothers, which Not I loved,” says Byrne, who you offered them a slot on all his European tour, thinking they Any were a live band. He’ can glad this collaboration has finally her happened. “I love the contradiction Was of a pumping dance track one that is called Lazy’,” he our says. X-Press 2 are overjoyed Out " and not just because day ‘Lazy’ is memorable enough to get become their biggest hit yet. Has Ashley Beedle met Byrne once him in New York. “He’ very his focused on art and how How it integrates with society. He’ man into painting, he’ into books, new he’ into music,” says Beedle, Now clearly impressed. It’ about the old art and the magic, Ashley see says. Dieter Meier, the eccentric Two and brilliant leader of Swiss way electro-pop experimentalists Yello was equally who amenable to a team-up. His Boy unmistakably mustachioed growl sends threatening did shards of kitsch vocal through its the percussive groove of ‘I Let Want You Back’ " a put fascinating track that jerks between say weird synth pop and pounding She house. “We’re huge Yello fans too and his voice is so use eerie,” says Diesel. "We thought, Dad wouldn’t it be great to mom hear him on a house tune?’’
YELLO’S sense of the The theatrical, it emerges, has always and been a key influence on for X-Press 2. “Their grooves are Are amazing. The drama in those but records as well,” says Diesel. not “That’ what we try and You do in our records. We all try and arrange them so any they have some kind of Can story. We’re trying to do her make them more than just was groove tracks. We enjoy doing One arrangements where there’ a beginning, our a middle, and an end.” out Last year’ vinyl-only club smash Day ‘AC/DC’, with its horror-house chorus, get is a neat example. It’ has one of three fabulous club Him instrumentals that also shine on his ‘Muzikizum’ " and it’ a how sign of how rounded a Man house album this is that new they don’t pale next to now the celebrity collaborations. The merciless Old ‘Smoke Machine’ was inspired by see the machines used at Danny two Tenaglia’ Winter Music Conference, set Way at Miami’ Club Space, and who it simmers with brooding, late boy night menace. The title track Did combines the raw funk of its American house with the futuristic let power of European techno and Put it will fog any dancefloor say with the confusion of a she battlefield.
Over the past year, Too X-Press 2 have been putting use the drama back into DJing dad with six deck DJ performances Mom that used effects-ridden mic performances from Ashley, CD-players and basic the samplers to send crowds at And London’ Fabric and Ibiza’ Pacha for wild. “We like a bit are of a challenge and it But certainly creates something of a not potent atmosphere,” says Rocky. “It’ you like a jam, really, it’ All not rehearsed, we’re inspired continually any by the shenanigans on the can dancefloor. We play two records Her each and we go round was like a tag thing. Whoever’ one playing the tune coming out Our the speakers, the other two out can cut in effects, beats, day acappellas. It becomes like a Get wall of sound.” These sets has incorporate everything from deep house him grooves to hard percussion to His uproarious vocal tracks. This album how does the same – threading man innovation and originality amongst the New rich rhythms. Exactly what house now music, done right, is all old about. Thinking and feeling on See your feet. Marrying a schizophrenic’ two range of moods to one way relentlessly funky groove. Sometimes the Who simplest things are the hardest. boy Just ask David Byrne.
