- The only time I've seen Armand Van Helden was at Benicassim Festival in Spain, a month or so after my 18th birthday. While most of my friends were off watching Muse on the main stage, a small group of us splintered off to catch Van Helden closing out the weekend in the dance tent. He dropped "NYC Beat" and "My My My," as well as big-room remixes of The Prodigy's "Out Of Space" and Red Hot Chili Peppers' "By The Way." We danced non-stop, and when it got too hot, we took our tops off and tied them around our heads.
That was in 2007. That same year, Van Helden released his seventh studio album, Ghettoblaster, a record that confirmed his status as a household name in the world of electro house. In the years that followed, he'd repeatedly break into the pop charts, collaborating with Dizzee Rascal, Steve Aoki, and A-Trak as Duck Sauce. Gone were the fiery, razor-sharp grooves and disco samples of his '90s productions, replaced by colossal basslines, cheesy vocals and hands-in-the-air pianos. This new Van Helden was totally unrecognisable from the young producer who was once the beating heart of New York's thriving house scene.
Given Van Helden's recent history, Ministry Of Sound's decision to call on him for their Masterpiece series seemed, at first glance, a risky move. Van Helden doesn't have the lasting legacy of other artists in the series, such as David Rodigan, Gilles Peterson or Andrew Weatherall. But this mix asks us to forget the last 15 years of Van Helden's career. Starting at The Loft in Boston at the turn of the '90s, it explores two contrasting styles that had a profound impact on Van Helden growing up: American pop and freestyle.
It was at The Loft, first on the dance floor and then in the booth, that Van Helden discovered his love for this new, funky club music, and there's not a moment on CD1 when that passion doesn't burst through. All of the scene's big dogs get a shout-out (except Van Helden himself), from Mood II Swing on the opening cut to Masters At Work, MK, Earth People and Jellybean. But it's Groove Patrol ("Need Your Love") and Soho ("Hot Music") who provide the standout cuts. Given its recent resurgence, you might think another classic US house mix is the last thing you need in your life, but this'll remind you why it's forever hailed as one of dance music's golden eras.
If disc one delivers the goods exactly to order, disc two is the mix's curveball. In a homage to his parents' record collection, AVH presents an hour of soft rock from the '70s and '80s, ranging from the catchy to the downright soppy. There are a couple of guilty pleasures, but for every Toto track there's Exile's "Kiss You All Over," a Route 66 power ballad of the type you assumed existed but hoped never to hear. The third disc positions itself somewhere between the other two, homing in on freestyle, a short-lived electro-funk sound that emerged from the US in the '80s. The mix gets off to a thrilling start, all frenetic, brightly-coloured beats and lovelorn vocals, but occasionally errs on the wrong side of cheesy. A late outing for Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam's "I Wonder If I Take You Home," though, is one of the highlights of the package.
As saccharine as it is in places, Masterpiece is the best thing AVH has put his name to since 1999's 2Future4U LP. That might not sound like much of an accolade, given the direction he took since then, but these three discs offer an insight into the musical memory of one of house music's most important figures.
トラックリストCD1 The Loft - Boston
01. Mood II Swing - I Need Your Luv (Right Now) (Lem's Church Mix)
02. Saint Etienne - Only Love Can Break Your Heart (Masters At Work Dub)
03. Happyhead - Digital Love Thing Underground M.K. Mix
04. Joe T. Vannelli Feat. Csilla - Play With The Voice (Joe T. Vannelli Free Voice Mix)
05. Groove Patrol - Need Your Love
06. Ian Pooley - Don't You Be Afraid
07. The Swing Kids - Yeah (The Dope Mix)
08. Three Generations Feat Chevell - Get It Off (Underground Mix)
09. Sterling Void & Paris Brightledge - It's Alright (Original Mix)
10. Jellybean - Spillin’ The Beans (Alzibar Mix)
11. Earth People - Dance (Club Mix)
12. 2 Direct - Get Down
13. Go Bitch Go! (Work) - This Pussy (Original Bitch Mix)
14. Soho - Hot Music
15. Logic - The Warning (Inner Mix)
CD2 Yacht Rock Don’t Stop
01. Christopher Cross - Ride Like The Wind
02. Little River Band - The Night Owls
03. Robbie Dupree - Steal Away
04. Kenny Loggins - This Is It
05. Exile - Kiss You All Over
06. Climax Blues Band - Gotta Have More Love
07. Toto - Georgy Porgy
08. Boz Scaggs - JoJo
09. Benny Mardones - Into The Night
10. Player - Baby Come Back Single Version
11. Ambrosia - Biggest Part Of Me
12. Chicago - Wishing You Were Here
13. The Doobie Brothers - It Keeps You Runnin'
CD3 Freestyle Forever
01. Giggles - Love Letter (12-inch Version)
02. Stevie B - Spring Love (Come Back To Me)
03. Nocera - Summertime Summertime
04. Coro - Where Are You Tonight (Extended Club Version)
05. India - Dancing On The Fire (Album Release)
06. George Lamond - Bad Of The Heart
07. Stevie B - Dreamin’ Of Love
08. Information Society - Running
09. Nice & Wild - Diamond Girl
10. Debbie Deb - Lookout Weekend
11. Freestyle - It’s Automatic
12. Debbie Deb - When I Hear Music
13. Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam - I Wonder If I Take You Home
14. Hanson & Davis - Hungry For Your Love
15. Joyce Sims - (You Are My) All And All