X-Press 2 become the first UK artists to do a volume for the famous series called Choice: A Collection of Classics. Will they bring anything different to the table?

Xpress 2 – Choice – A Collection of Classics (Azuli Records)
It is often hard to pick, which series that I like the best from Azuli because Late Night Tales is so good but so is Choice: Classics Series, so I won’t pick and say they both rule. If you are new to this series, let me give you some background for it. Choice was originally made, so that famous deejays could tell you about which tunes have had impact on their lives and in effect you learn more about music history and you learn more about the deejay. They have had Louie Vega, the legendary Frankie Knuckles, Danny Tenaglia, the garage legend known as Tony Humpries, the Chicago house man Derrick Carter and the Detroit techno king that we know as Jeff Mills. Now the first UK group to do the series has been selected and they are the trio known as Xpress 2, made up of Rocky (Darren Rock), Diesel (Darren House) and Ashley Beedle and have made many records under a variety of aliases. They were chosen to pick what basically made them and here it is.

CD1

1.Key Tronics Ensemble – Calypso of House (Paradise Mix)
2.KC Flight vs. Funky Junction – Voices (Original Dub Mix)
3.The Woodentops V Bang the party – Tainted World (Kid Batchelor Rub)
4.Prince Charles & The City Beat Band – Bush Beat
5.Incognito – Jacob’s Ladder (MAW Yorican Mix)
6.James Brown – There was a time
7.Neil Howard – The Gathering
8.Open House feat. Placid Angels – Aquatic
9.Quartz – Beyond The Clouds
10.The Voices of East Harlem – Cashing In
11.The Realistics – Where’s The Monkey
12.Carl Craig – At Les
13.The Realistics – Where’s The Monkey
14.Patti Smith – Piss Factory

CD 2

1.Samuel Purdey – Lucky Radio
2.Natural Experience – Don’t Leave Me (I’m With You)
3.Lola – Wax The Van (Kenny’s Club Mix)
4.Art of Noise – Beatbox Diversion 1
5.Elkin and Nelson – Jibaro (Enrolle)
6.The Cure – Pictures of You (Strange Mix)
7.Jean Luc Ponty – In the fast lane
8.Womack and Womack – Life’s a ballgame (Ballroom Mix)
9.Yello – Le Habanera
10.Jine – Take It To the house (Dub 2)
11.David Astri – Dancing Digits (Album Mix)
12.Rufus and Chaka Khan – Ain’t Nobody (Hallucinogenic Version)

X-press 2’s history has been influenced by a lot of early house pioneers and their work and they always seemed to love records from the middle to late 1980’s, when Acid House was huge. CD 1 begins with a Balearic house number from the mid 80’s, which really gets the CD rolling and then they move into the famous dirty tribal track of KC Flight vs. Funky Junction - Voices, which was really big among clubbers and a certain tribal king named Steve Lawler. It is certainly a nice start and the tracks are mixed, which did not happen in many of the other classics versions. When The Woodentops V Bang the party – Tainted World (Kid Batchelor Rub) gets going with a housy tribal feel, if breathes more life into the CD and it is upbeat like the others.

As track four rolls around, we roll into a dirty 80’s house number with a bassline that just gives me the chills. I feel that X-press 2 would never not add a MAW number because they were influenced by so much house music in their lives. I love the subtle yorican mix here, it does so much, it makes such smart use of the percs and it is also upbeat like the others. The Classics albums are known for throwing in surprises and this is no different. We come around to song number six, with the Godfather of soul, cue 60’s music, Mr.James Brown. My mother was a huge fan of James Brown and she always told me that one day that I would appreciate his role in music history, well her words were accurate, I realized it listening to this CD. You gain the sense of that James Brown gave a lot of ideas to the early disco producers. I love the funk and the raw vocal of James Brown. Track seven rolls in and we are treated to early techno with Neil Howard, it is more Detroit techno from the mid 80’s. The forward thinking is there and you can see how much the techno sound has evolved over the nearly two decades since May, Atkins and Saunderson decided to turn the music world on its head. I know how much that must have rocked because I’ve had my world turned upside down Track seven contains such an addictive piano riff and hook, I love it.

Open House feat. Placid Angels – Aquatic then enters the fray, with its early techno feel as well. You see how British producers were influenced by Detroit Techno. The riff is so catchy here as well, it adds more minimalism to the mix but its great. We skip back about a decade in time with song number nine that uses such a grinding piano line with real drums backing it, what a funky number, that sounds like the late 60’s to early 70’s. Music was never about being new, music to me was always about being different and the classics series is one of the few that allows deejays to pick any style of music from any era that they want because it is what helped them. Song ten gets going with the early house of “Cashing In”, which gives the CD such an old skool feel.

“Where’s the Monkey” starts the homestretch of this first CD, which is interrupted by the minimalism of Carl Craig, then they go back to the song and end on a crazy note with Patti Smith, who is a legend in her own right. A solid and wildly varied first disc.

CD 2

We start the second disc with some laidback funk of Samuel Purdey, which uses such a funky hooky backed by this cool piano line. The funky as heck “Don’t Leave Me” comes in. It contains a solid piano line with a great vocal, which I like a lot and it screams out late 1970’s. The sultry vocal adds so much to this tune and you can understand why X-press 2 like it so much. The only song that I cannot stand is an old song that uses a little child before the vocal kicks in, who sings “Why, why”, it just grates my nerves for some reason. It is laidback house, just in case you were wondering what genre it is.

One of my favorite old skool classics was Art of Noise’s Beatbox Diversion, which makes extremely good use of the beatbox and some cool effects. This goes on for a little over eight minutes. One of my favorite all time 80’s tunes is “Jibaro” by Elkin and Nelson, which brings in some excellent elements of raw funk and raw instrumentation. It makes great use of percussion and great use of horns, which gives this compilation, some added jump.

Robert Smith is a legend, for the ones who are old enough to remember, realize that he is the frontman for the Cure. Well X-press 2 bring in a song of his called “Pictures of You”, which goes back to the mid 80’s. I had never heard it but I like that they added a song that you never expected but remember here people, it is the Classics series, so there are no rules. The song is catchy and has Smith’s trademark vocal style involved, it really adds some more flavor to this compilation. We then head into Jean Luc Ponty’s In the Fast Lane, which is an early latin house song that puts some horn riffs to excellent work. This shows who acid house affected the producers of today like X-press 2.

X-press 2 are not done with their early 80’s house jaunt. They use the forgotten Womack and Womack track called “Life’s just a ballgame”. The vocals here drive this song, probably husband and wife but it adds that forgotten element of things today called “funk”. I love the flute that is used in this, they use it in conjunction with the vocals, which makes you want to get down and boogie. Now we move into Yello – La Habenera, it reminds me of Ramirez’s work from the early 90’s but this is probably what gave Ramirez some ideas. Even thought, I have compared Yello’s track to Ramirez’s work, the main difference is the bassline and how heavy it is. Yello was done in the mid 80’s and Ramirez did his work in the early 1990’s.

As this compilation nears the final 3 tracks, you can help to smile because you now know exactly what influenced X-press 2. Jine’s “Take It To The House” is track ten and it is early electro, complete with robot vocal, which just repeats the track title. About halfway through it, a piano line gives it, yes that word again, more funk!. The second last track is called “Dancing Digits”, which is another funky number, the best part of this is the grinding keyboard riff involved. I love when you get such an old skool feel because today’s musicians seem to use bad vocals and bad tracks too often, they should take a page from the book of the pioneers. The compilation ends on this cool remix, which uses some amazing piano and keyboard lines here, I love it. It is funny that certain songs can be over twenty years old but still sound incredibly fresh and mind blowing

Conclusion:
I was never a big fan of X-press 2 but this album makes me want to consider their stuff at times. They bring you here 2 CDs of varied gems that have had an effect on them and also in doing so, giving you a lesson in music history. Pick it up, it is well made and also consider the other classics albums.

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