- It's not hard to give a reissue like this a 5/5. Forgotten gems unearthed by guys who were there the first time (Global Communication) lovingly dusted off by guys who came just a year or two after (NRK) for people that may not have heard them before (me). Everybody wins. Perhaps the best part of NRK's Back In The Box series, aside from the mixes which have been uniformly excellent, are the inevitable samplers. They've helped give listeners the chance to listen to some of Joey Negro, 'Little' Louie Vega, Dave Clarke and DJ Sneak's favorite tunes in full, outside of the mix.
Here, that means we get a track that Rush Hour didn't license for their Anthony 'Shake' Shakir compilation in 2009, one of the best tunes from Ed "Plaid" Handley's short-lived Balil alias and Kevin Saunderson's moody "Just Want Another Chance." Hardly obscure names, but certainly some of the deeper cuts of each producer's catalogue. Due to the recording technology of the day, there'll be no mistaking these tracks for anything but old-school. Yet with many DJs opening up their sets a bit lately to find room for different genres and tempos and digital technology giving them the freedom to do so, don't be surprised to hear one of these at a club near you very soon. After all, they're all two decades old, and they still sound like the future.
Tracklist A Shake - Sonar 123
B1 Balil - Nort Route
B2 Reese - Just Want Another Chance