- You either love or hate Fatboy Slim. Personally, I am still waiting for him to apologize for the abject Big Beat atrocity that was ‘The Rockafeller Skank’ (yes, I can hold grudges for decades!). But at the same time, you cannot deny Norman Cook’s flair for a pop hook, hence why his famous remixes for the likes of Cornershop or Groove Armada are somehow still standing the test of time. For proof of his ongoing talent at A&R-ing, look no further than his Southern Fried imprint, gladly purveying us with mainstream brattish house and poppy, semiprecious electro-pop moments on a regular basis. ‘Southern Fried & Tested’ is the label’s latest double anthology of some of their most recent and not-so-recent cuts, mixed by Cook himself (under his Mighty Dub Katz guise) and the label’s own underrated Cagedbaby. I could say the compilation has “guilty pleasure” stamped all over it, but to be fully honest, there is nothing to be seriously embarrassed about on here: commercial, big-room house rarely sounds so shameless and enjoyable.
CD1 sees Cook going for the label’s most instantly recognizable and famous tracks (e.g. Van Helden’s ‘Hear My Name’ and his much-loved ‘My My My’, Mylo’s remix of Elton John’s unlikely dance hit ‘Are You Ready for Love’, Red’s ‘Release the Pressure’, Kurtis Mantronix’s ‘77 Strings’) while opening and closing the whole thing with Space Cowboy, thus turning the mix into an unconcealed, albeit maybe a bit too predictable and safe for some tastes, populist ride. Those looking for the label’s slightly less-known stuff will head for CD2, on which Tom ‘Cagedbaby’ Gandey skillfully crams almost thirty tracks into about one messy hour. In a dance world where sounds and sub-genres are out of fashion before even seeing the light of day, it is actually more than nice to hear again, for example, the Andrea Doria-produced ‘Bucci Bag’ and ‘More Lemonade’, two of my very own favorite dance singles in recent memory: funnily impudent, they sit perfectly well next to Heavy Rock’s brassy ‘I Just Want to be a Drummer’ or Touchés more jockish cuts such as Shees at the Clubb, Calling my Namee and The Body Clapp. Then, with The Presetsss remix of Cagedbabyys Hello Theree, originally released in 2006 as a single, Southern Fried has a truly gorgeous electro-pop gem on its hands: those plaintive opening synths and melancholic lyrics could really melt the heart of even the most cynical skeptics and labells detractors altogether.
Weirdly enough, turns out it seems Southern Fried might have a key role to play in the actual nno-pop-electro-house-nn-rave renaissance the British dance scene seems to be going through (again) these days, having one foot in the pop charts and the other on the Turnmills dancefloor. But no matter what you think of the labells owner himself, ittd be silly to deny yourself some genuine fun, as showcased on this compilation, because of some old unresolved issues you might or might not have had with The Housemartins.
TracklistDisc 1 mixed by Mighty Dub Katz
1. Intro
2. Space Cowboy - Round And Round
3. Kurtis Mantronix - 77 Strings
4. Mighty Dub Katz - Let The Drums Speak
5. Armand Van Helden - Mymymy
6. Mighty Dub Katz - Magic Carpet Ride '07
7. Markus Nikolai - Bushes (Norman Cook Remix)
8. Bassbin Twins - Out Of Hand (House Vibe)
9. Red - Release The Pressure (Fatboy Slim Remix)
10. Jess And Crabbe - The Big Boo Ya (Norman Cook Remix)
11. Mighty Dub Katz - Just A Groove
12. Percy Filth - Show Me Your Monkey
13. Cylone - Lord Of The Land
14. Armand Van Helden - Hear My Name Feat Spalding Rockwell
15. Elton John - Are You Ready For Love (Mylo's Road Map To Peace Remix)
16. Mighty Dub Katz - Just Another Groove
17. Space Cowboy - I Would Die For You
18. Outro
Disc 2 mixed by Cagedbaby
1. Intro
2. The Black Ghosts - Face - Kissy Sell Out's Street Corner Dubplate
3. Touch? - Calling My Name
4. Trabant - The One - Filthy Dukes Society Dub Mix
5. Andrea Doria - Bucci Bag
6. Mighty Dub Katz - Magic Carpet Ride - Claude Vonstroke 'Sucker Free City Edition
7. Phunk Electric - More Stronger - Detroit Edit
8. Armand Van Helden - Into Your Eyes
9. Glasgow Gangster Funk - Cutey Pie
10. Cagedbaby - Hello There- Presets Mix
11. Cagedbaby - 16 Lovers - Filthy Dukes Society Mix
12. Heavy Rock - I Just Want To Be A Drummer
13. Dada Life - The Great Smorgasbord
14. Touch? - Shes At The Club
15. Armand Van Helden - Sugar - Paper Faces Mix
16. Deranged - Punk City
17. Armand Van Helden - Mymymy - Cagedbaby's Pace Remix
18. Phunk Electric - Video Games Crash
19. The Black Ghosts - Face - Switch Mix
20. Touch? - The Body Clap
21. Bucci Bag - More Lemonade - Sparkling Version
22. Cagedbaby - 16 Lovers - Serge Santiago & Lottie Mix
23. Cagedbaby - Hello There - Radio Slave Mix
24. Professional Losers - Big Fat Nasty Filthy Bass - Babydetroit Remix
25. Armand Van Helden ft Fat Joe & BL - Touch Your Toes - Serge Santiago Remix
26. Markus Nikolai - Bushes - Derrick Carter's First Re-creation (Version 1.2)
27. The Black Ghosts - Something New
28. Outro