Album: Leftism
Artist: Leftfield
Born: Soho, London
Released: January 1995
Genre: Electronic
The explosion in British dance music (rave, trance, techno, house, etc) during the 90s only resulted in a handful of great albums, Leftism being one of them. Leftfield were a duo formed of DJ Neil Barnes and musician Paul Daley, both of whom were part of the thriving club scene in London's Soho. In 1993, they scored a surprise hit with Open Up, a techno track that features John Lydon on vocals and which reached No.13 in the UK singles chart. Based on this success, the group went into the studio for over a year to record Leftism, an album spanning the whole gamut of dance music genres and more. Leftfield helped to establish the dance music template, later followed by other electronica groups like the Chemical Brothers, of having guest vocalists star on key tracks on the album. Opener, Release The Pressure, features two reggae singers, Birmingham-born Cheshire Cat and Kingston-born Earl Sixteen, with Earl going on to become a key member of Glastonbury favourites, Dreadzone. Release The Pressure is one of the darker moments on the record, full of inner city grime, while Afro Left features Neil Cole (as Djum Djum) spouting inspired gibberish.
Melt is one of the most beautiful moments on the record, its stunning ambient sound interspersed with techno bleeps and sonic washes reminiscent of Harmonia's Deluxe. The dreamy atmosphere continues on Song Of Life, while Original is one of the record's standout moments, living up to its title by offering listeners a slice of avant-garde futuristic dub. Original also features a seductive vocal performance by indie rock singer, Toni Halliday. The pacing of the album is superb, with the beat intensifying in the middle of the record with Black Flute and Space Shanty, the latter a tribal house masterpiece and another of the record's highlights. Danny Red, another reggae guest vocalist, appears on Inspection (Check One), which fuses dancehall and heavy beats, to create a sound similar to The Prodigy's Poison. After the breakbeats of Storm 3000 and the brilliant Open Up, the record closes with 21st Century Poem, a diatribe from Manchester-based poet Lemn Sissay. Leftism's great strength is its experimental approach, inspiring a new generation of dance musicians to view the album (as opposed to the single or live performances) as the best vehicle for their creativity.
The explosion in British dance music (rave, trance, techno, house, etc) during the 90s only resulted in a handful of great albums, Leftism being one of them. Leftfield were a duo formed of DJ Neil Barnes and musician Paul Daley, both of whom were part of the thriving club scene in London's Soho. In 1993, they scored a surprise hit with Open Up, a techno track that features John Lydon on vocals and which reached No.13 in the UK singles chart. Based on this success, the group went into the studio for over a year to record Leftism, an album spanning the whole gamut of dance music genres and more. Leftfield helped to establish the dance music template, later followed by other electronica groups like the Chemical Brothers, of having guest vocalists star on key tracks on the album. Opener, Release The Pressure, features two reggae singers, Birmingham-born Cheshire Cat and Kingston-born Earl Sixteen, with Earl going on to become a key member of Glastonbury favourites, Dreadzone. Release The Pressure is one of the darker moments on the record, full of inner city grime, while Afro Left features Neil Cole (as Djum Djum) spouting inspired gibberish.
Melt is one of the most beautiful moments on the record, its stunning ambient sound interspersed with techno bleeps and sonic washes reminiscent of Harmonia's Deluxe. The dreamy atmosphere continues on Song Of Life, while Original is one of the record's standout moments, living up to its title by offering listeners a slice of avant-garde futuristic dub. Original also features a seductive vocal performance by indie rock singer, Toni Halliday. The pacing of the album is superb, with the beat intensifying in the middle of the record with Black Flute and Space Shanty, the latter a tribal house masterpiece and another of the record's highlights. Danny Red, another reggae guest vocalist, appears on Inspection (Check One), which fuses dancehall and heavy beats, to create a sound similar to The Prodigy's Poison. After the breakbeats of Storm 3000 and the brilliant Open Up, the record closes with 21st Century Poem, a diatribe from Manchester-based poet Lemn Sissay. Leftism's great strength is its experimental approach, inspiring a new generation of dance musicians to view the album (as opposed to the single or live performances) as the best vehicle for their creativity.
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