Woodentops

3CD collection pre-queling NME’s huge selling C86 compilation. Featuring the best of the burgeoning indie scene from 1985.Including tracks from The Jesus And Mary Chain, The Stone Roses, That Petrol Emotion, The Woodentops, James, Del Amitri, The Housemartins and many more.Following the success of the three-disc compilation, ‘The Sun Shines Here’ (which documented the roots of Indie Pop from 1980-84), the prequel to C86, C85 combines “name” bands with many obscurities making their debut on CD. Several acts on C85 would eventually feature on that NME’s C86 collection: Primal Scream, The Wedding Present, the Mighty Lemon Drops, etc, who all had singles released in 1985.

3CD collection pre-queling NME’s huge selling C86 compilation. Featuring the best of the burgeoning indie scene from 1985.Including tracks from The Jesus And Mary Chain, The Stone Roses, That Petrol Emotion, The Woodentops, James, Del Amitri, The Housemartins and many more.Following the success of the three-disc compilation, ‘The Sun Shines Here’ (which documented the roots of Indie Pop from 1980-84), the prequel to C86, C85 combines “name” bands with many obscurities making their debut on CD. Several acts on C85 would eventually feature on that NME’s C86 collection: Primal Scream, The Wedding Present, the Mighty Lemon Drops, etc, who all had singles released in 1985.

3CD collection pre-queling NME’s huge selling C86 compilation. Featuring the best of the burgeoning indie scene from 1985.Including tracks from The Jesus And Mary Chain, The Stone Roses, That Petrol Emotion, The Woodentops, James, Del Amitri, The Housemartins and many more.Following the success of the three-disc compilation, ‘The Sun Shines Here’ (which documented the roots of Indie Pop from 1980-84), the prequel to C86, C85 combines “name” bands with many obscurities making their debut on CD. Several acts on C85 would eventually feature on that NME’s C86 collection: Primal Scream, The Wedding Present, the Mighty Lemon Drops, etc, who all had singles released in 1985.

During the latter half of the '80s a new breed of guitar-orientated bands began to emerge in the UK - armed with an overt pop song craft sensibility, and enamoured with a conflicting post-punk spirit and adoration of the '60s, many of these unlikely acts - all anoraks, Dr Martens and charity shop chic - would go on to become Top 40 regulars and set the tone for music beyond these shores, culminating in 'The Stone Roses', an album that defined a generation. 'Cut Me Deep' - named for a Jasmine Minks track which captured that spirit - presents a snapshot of that time and place, via essential independent labels such as Creation, Sarah Records and 4AD, and their major backed counterparts in Blanco Y Negro et al, alongside distribution via Rough Trade and other like-minded outlets. With an electric guitar in hand (no Stratocasters here please), and resplendent in clothes as immaculately and cheaply curated as their record collections, a new generation of British musicians kickstarted what would become the only credible challenge to the increasingly dominant synthesiser pop scene of the late 1980's.

Following the success of the three-disc compilation, ‘The Sun Shines Here’ (which documented the roots of Indie Pop from 1980-84), the prequel to C86, C85 combines “name” bands with many obscurities making their debut on CD. Several acts on C85 would eventually feature on that NME’s C86 collection: Primal Scream, The Wedding Present, the Mighty Lemon Drops, etc, who all had singles released in 1985.

Over the last few months, I’ve been reviewing just a few of the Backbeats series of compilations released by Harmless since 2009. This is a comprehensive overview of various genres of music that numbers everything from Deep Soul, Eighties Garage and Northern Soul to Philly Soul, Disco and House music. One of my favorites of the thirty compilations that Backbeats, a subsidiary of Harmless have released is The Big Apple Bites Back-New York House and Remix Culture, released in July 2010. This is compilation that contains a combination of Salsoul and house music, many of which are remixed by various DJs. Among the DJs remixing tracks are Frankie Knuckles, Kerri Chandler, Joe Clausell and Blaze.

Rewind to 30 years ago when Paul Oakenfold set out on a trip to Ibiza, what he learned there would change dance & electronic music in the UK & Europe, ultimately the World, forever… Generations charts this and is a 60 track journey through the last three decades of music. It’s split into three mixes; House Mix, Trance Mix and Balearic Mix. The House Mix contains no.1 hits from M/A/A/R/S, Steve Hurley, Black Box and Storm Queen, classic house tracks from CeCe Rogers, Marshall Jefferson, Inner City and Underworld. The Trance Mix has club & chart hits from Faithless, Chicane, Planet Perfecto, Da Hool and Schiller.