- Tom Middleton hails from the deep South West of England. He is Classically trained Cellist and Pianist, and grew up on a diet of 80's Electro, Synth Pop, Hip Hop, Goth, Rock, Jazzfunk, Early Acid House and Detroit . He is an artist, producer, amateur Cordon Bleu and Fusion Chef, and in-vogue remixer with DJ residencies and bi-monthly gig’s at Deep Step, House, Chillout and the Breakbeat Radio show on Kiss FM.
This triple CD “The Sound Of The Cosmos” is a reflection of what Tom Middleton is into. As he said:
"I’m thrilled that Hooj are releasing my ambitious eclectic triple CD selection...I couldn`t bare to leave off so many beautiful tracks or edit them down to a single CD, so take your pick from DeepElectroBreakStep, key mixed SoulfulSexyJazzHouse or the lovers guide to Chillout. I love playing different styles and tempos, creating feel good party vibes and making smiley people dance their knickers off.
"With this comp you can have it large with your mates in the front room, small with your parents in the kitchen, then have it off with your lover in the bedroom. It’s music for life with a feel good factor turned up to 11."
So without further a due, the CD…
CD1, Mixed Rhythm, opens well with Lovelife “Odyssey”, a laid back track with a gentle melody. This moves perfectly into Ils “No Soul”, a smooth track with nice not over the top male vocals. Next up is a real treat. It is a mash up done by Tom Middleton himself of New Orders “Blue Monday” and Tiga & Zytherius “Sunglasses at Night”. Sunglasses at Night has this nice 80’s sound to it, and weird male vocals. At about the 1 minute 50 mark you hear the unmistakable sound of Blue Monday; that quick vibrating kick at the beginning of the track is hard to miss. This is one of the best re-editing I have heard in a long time. Plasticjunk “It’s my Duty” is a return to more of a laidback feel, nice easy breaks, with gentle beeps and clicks layered over the top. With a nice snare kick, a little piano, and a saxophone, Modaji “Shocka’s Joint” slows the mix down just a fraction. “U Know it” (Solid Groove Remix) than steps up the tempo with a cheeky rap sample, a skillfully used guitar riff and great drum patterns. “Hear My People” and “Dreamy Days” have a nice garage feel to them. Blue Effect’s “Skybound” then moves back into more of a relaxed feel, with smooth floating female vocals and just the right amount of synth sounds. The mix finishes off with “Pong” by Swag, at roughly the same tempo the mix started in.
CD 2, Mixed Melody, starts off with a computer voice saying, “Welcome, this is the sound of the cosmos, deep house phase commence”. “Saturday Night Experience” by Jody Watley is the first track. It is a warm deep house record. Nice vocal, but not over the top. A lovely smooth house number in “Open You Eyes” is next, which moves perfectly in “Breathe”. Cosmos “Take Me With You”, is used as a beepapella over the top of breathe, adding a slightly funkier edge to the track. “People Come Runnin’” is along the same lines as the earlier tracks, nice smooth house, with lovely female vocals. “Brothers” has more of a funky deep house feel to it, with strong saxophone and strong male vocals. A real 70’s feel is captured in “Misty Blues”. When hearing this track I cant help but think of the movie “Boogie Nights”. “Caboclo” starts out a with a strong baseline and has subtle but eerie synth sounds, then after a distorted robotic voice, breaks down and totally changes direction, turning into a smooth house number. “Destination” gets things going just a little bit more moving perfectly into “Another World”. “Old Styles” is a funky house number with filtered vocals that moves flawlessly into “If I Let You Down”. If I Let You done simply put is a beautiful. The mix ends on a joyous note with “Forget the Past”, which could only be described as euphoric.
CD 3, Mixed Harmony, begins with “Pacific Memories”, a chilled tune with ocean noises and soothing chants. “Not Just Anybody” feat Kate Rogers is a lovely track with warm soothing female vocals over the top of a tapping snare drum. The guitar riff of “Home Movies” adds a distinctly Latin feel. “Cosmos” by Bron Dogs is a lovely house number with hypnotic synth sounds and a nice spoken word sample. Mandalays “No Reality” is sheer beauty. With vocals that sound like a cross between Bjork and Lamb, their is a chance you will get emotional. “Extraordinary People” is a minimal track with eerie melody and a female vocal sample that sound like it is taken from the 50’s. “Purple” is the next stand out track. Infectious vocals over a smooth snare kick. “Lazy Monday” is like all other Groove Armada productions, top notch. It takes the tempo of the mix up just a little and adds a happier feel to it. “Hayling” by talented French producers FC Kahuna is next up. Stunning vocals with the usual plethora of bleeps and tweaks. “You Were The Only One Around” uses chords brilliantly moving into a perfectly timed breakdown. With “Moonbathing” by Amba the mix seems to slow down even more. The mix concludes in an extremely peaceful and fulfilled fashion with Bob Morgan “Marguerite”.
Overall this is an amazing CD. Each individual disc are so strong that they could be sold on their own. It is mixed very well, with smooth transitions, and some nice long mixes on occasions. There is never a dull moment with the CD constantly changing. This is a must have triple CD, sheer brilliance.
Tracklisting:
CD1- Mixed Rhythm
01 Lovelife - Odyssey
02 lls - No Soul
03 New Order - Blue Monday
04 Tiga & Zyntherius - Sunglasses At Night
05 Plasticjunk - It's My Duty
06 Fabrice Lig - Please Try Again (Morgan Geist Mix)
07 Modaji - Shocka's Joint
08 Dj Rocca visits Pressure Drop - Taxi (Cane Matto Mix)
09 Trevor Loveys - U Know It (Solid Groove Remix)
10 Landslide - Hear My People
11 Roots Manuva - Dreamy Days (MJ Cole London Dub)
12 Blue Effect - Skybound
13 Envoi - Landscapes
14 Swag - Pong
CD2- Mixed Melody
01 Jody Watley - Saturday Night Experience
02 Yann Fontaine - Open Your Eyes (New Phunk Theory Mix)
03 Telepopmusik - Breathe
04 Taxi - People Come Runnin' (Needs Mix)
05 Addvibe - Brothers
06 Rinocerose - Lost Love (Dubtribe Mix)
07 A Million Sons - Misty Blue (Schmoov Mix)
08 Illinton - Love Journey (N.Y. Soul Mix) feat C Temenu
09 John Beltran - Caboclo (Get F**ked Mix)
10 Herbert - The Audience
11 Schmoov! - Put Your Mind To It
12 Ananda Project feat Gaelle Adisson - Destination
13 Big Sexy feat Yost & Funk - Another World (Passport Mix)
14 Milton Jackson - Old Styles
15 Microman - If I Let U Down
16 Charles Webster - Forget The Past
CD3- Mixed Harmony
01 Fenomenon - Pacific Memories
02 Rae & Christian feat. Kate Rogers - Not Just Anybody (Atjazz Mix)
03 Blu Mar Ten - Home Movies
04 London Elektricity - Do You Believe
05 Bron Dogs - Cosmos
06 Mandalay - No Reality
07 Harmonic 33 - Extraordinary People
08 Alucidnation - Beautiful House
09 Jimpster - B-Mine
10 Crustacean with Bronagh Slevin - Purple (A Tribe Called Quest Edit)
11 Groove Armada - Lazy Moon (Album Version)
12 FC Kahuna - Hayling
13 Rune Lindbaek - Beautiful
14 Ulrich Schnauss - You Were The Only One Around
15 Amba - Moonbathing
16 International Observer - Flip Flop Cemetary
17 Bob Morgan - Marguerite