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Urban75 Album of the Year 1994

stethoscope said:
Many of the artist jungle/drum'n'bass albums started to appear from 1995, although often featuring a lot of output from 1994 - Kemet Crew, Guy Called Gerald, Congo Natty, Omni Trio, and Metalheads/Goldie - Inner City Life probably most well-known...



1994 saw a lot of compilations as you'd expect for a genre based around 12" singles - Jungle Hits, Jungle Mania, etc. as the jungle sound went mainstream with the likes of Incredible. And M-Beat did put out a compilation-style album that year with Sweet Love...



4 Hero - Parallel Universe still doesnt get the props it deserves for jungle/early d'n'b experiementalism - its lead track...

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These are great. There's much more serene synth sounds involved than I remember.

Reading my post back it perhaps comes across as ironic denigration of the genre and that wasn't my intention. Just at the time this sort of thing wasn't in my world even though I was looking for rhythmic complexity and I missed out.

I guess I'm going to have to decide whether that M-Beat album is a compilation or not...
 
At the time these are what I was listening to.

Änglagård - Epilog

This is the second and for a long period final album from the Swedish prog rock revival band Änglagård and they go full on instrumental symphonic rock. It's a classic of this micro-genre. I still listen to it today, it's glorious, epic and full of little diversions. If you're looking for this sort of thing (and you very probably aren't) then this is where to go.



5uu's - Hungers Teeth

This is album I saw described by the single word intricate. So of course I bought it. That's not a good description though. A strange off beat punkish progish record that heavily uses Tom Dimuzio's abstract electronica as background noise delivering an ethereal indirect feel. If you're NOT looking for this sort of thing (and you very probably aren't) listen to this anyway. It's amazing.



U Totem - Strange Attractors
U Totem were a collaboration between two bands 5uu's and Motor Totemist Guild. This is the second and final album and it's very different to the first and it's a Japanophile concept album composed by James Grigsby of MTG. To this day I still don't know what to make of it. Not on bancamp or youtube for the most part... So whatever.



Iva Bittova - Ne nehledej

My friend who was exploring similar musical territory as I was found this (possibly in 1995). Solo Czech violinist/singer. And by turns it's wild, madcap and heart rendering. As with the above you may find it difficult to stream.



Il Berlione - In 453 Minutes Infernal Cooking

Same friend introduced me to this one. Weird and difficult Japanese prog/fusion. It will take it out of you.

 
As I know there are fans on here King Crimson reformed around 1994 with the double guitar, double bass/stick, double drums ie. "double power trio" line up. They released the come back album in 1995, but there was a taster ep in 1994 with different versions of the songs to the album and I remember the versions on the ep being a bit better than the album in general. I can't find this to stream anywhere and I suspect King Fripp doesn't regard it as canon, but if you are a fan and you get a chance give it a listen. Vrooom.

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Knotted said:
As I know there are fans on here King Crimson reformed around 1994 with the double guitar, double bass/stick, double drums ie. "double power trio" line up. They released the come back album in 1995, but there was a taster ep in 1994 with different versions of the songs to the album and I remember the versions on the ep being a bit better than the album in general. I can't find this to stream anywhere and I suspect King Fripp doesn't regard it as canon, but if you are a fan and you get a chance give it a listen. Vrooom.

View attachment 442281
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There's this extended edit of Cage

 
hitmouse said:
Almost impressive that PE had an album out then that no-one's mentioned so far, never listened to it but I got the impression there was a real fall-off after Apocalypse 91. Or maybe it's just gone unmentioned because no-one wanted to be the first to write "Muse Sick-N-Hour Mess Age" on this thread.
The Coup album (which has a genuinely great name) is one to add to the long list of 1994 albums that would be worth investigating if I had the time, along with the Gang Starr one, which I mostly know of from a song where Killer Mike rhymes the title with "orange".
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I don't know why I stopped listening to PE after Fear of A Black Planet (such a good title, never truer).... I think what came after just sounded dated compared to what else was going on - the beat style sounded dated to me....the hiphop formulas and trends were changing so fast in that time.....The Bomb Squad/Shocklee brothers productions were so powerful in those first albums... without them.... hmmm...so....
Never heard Muse Sick etc (such a bad title)...till now....its actually really good!! Off the maximum boil but still simmering. I wouldnt have thought that in 94 though. Id cut a few of the later tracks tho.

Anyhow just to say the Gang Starr one isn't one of their best, I don't think you're missing anything.. the next one Moment of Truth was a real return to form though.. Since we're making lists I'd say it goes;
1. Step In The Arena (1991)
2. Moment Of Truth (1998)
3. No More Mr Nice Guy (1989)
4. Daily Operation (1992)
5. Hard To Earn (1994)
6. The Ownerz (2003)
 
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ska invita said:
I don't know why I stopped listening to PE after Fear of A Black Planet (such a good title, never truer).... I think what came after just sounded dated compared to what else was going on - the beat style sounded dated to me....the hiphop formulas and trends were changing so fast in that time.....The Bomb Squad/Shocklee brothers productions were so powerful in those first albums... without them.... hmmm...so....
Never heard Muse Sick etc (such a bad title)...till now....its actually really good!! Off the maximum boil but still simmering. I wouldnt have thought that in 94 though. Id cut a few of the later tracks tho.

Anyhow just to say the Gang Starr one isn't one of their best, I don't think you're missing anything.. the next one Moment of Truth was a real return to form though.. Since we're making lists I'd say it goes;
1. Step In The Arena (1991)
2. Moment Of Truth (1998)
3. No More Mr Nice Guy (1989)
4. Daily Operation (1992)
5. Hard To Earn (1994)
6. The Ownerz (2003)
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Fair enough, I think the only Gang Starr track I really know is DWYCK (featuring Nice & Smooth), which it turns out features on Hard to Earn... turns out to have an incredibly stylish video too:
1726161376042.png
 
Fast Floor - On a Quest for Intelligence.
This was Paul Clarke & Ron Well [who also went went under the name Jack Smooth of Smooth & Simmonds fame.] RYM has it down as Atmospheric Drum & Bass.



Drum n Bass not really my thing back then but I did love this.
Spring Heel Jack - The Sea Lettuce
 
Indeliblelink said:
Fast Floor - On a Quest for Intelligence.
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great shout, some classic cuts on this album
30th anniversary digital bandcamp release here with extra tunes
Holds up great (the DJ SS album I posted sounding dated in parts now sadly)
Most of which file under Jungle-Techno IMO

stavros said:
I don't think we've had Frank Black's second solo album yet. It's good, but a bit long, and probably not as good as his debut:

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enjoying this...terrible artwork tho!
 
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Two albums of 303 and 909 acid floorshakers from Hardfloor to choose from...

Full length album Respect:


and mini-album Funalogue:
 
Very cool collection of cuts from Roger Sanchez here, his first 'album', some unreleased elsewhere, 1994 east coast garage-house - golden era for him I think
A few classics on here


LmpwZWc.jpeg
 
Indeliblelink said:
No mention of the Big Poppa debut yet?
The Notorious B.I.G. – Ready To Die
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i always stayed clear of biggie...too much gun talk for me...he was unavoidable of course - ive never heard this album properly.... damn its bleak....relentlessly nihilistic and tragic.... at the time i thought he was all about braggadocio, listening now its more like a call for help... ive heard that Suicidal Thoughts track before but not in the context of the whole album start to finish ... fuck me.... RIP Biggie
(and the sex tunes like that of a repressed teenager, also sad)
 
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First Tortoise album was 1994. And it's my favourite by them. Love it so much. It's usually thought of as this early post-rock outing but that misses how jazzy it is and for that matter how drum and bass it is. Drums and bass being absolutely to the fore and occasional vibes. Like a modern take on cool jazz.

 
ska invita said:
one of my most played albums in 94...its only short though...jazz guitarist Ronnie Jordan with great beats from DJ Krush - trip hop I guess, but its more up beat than GB trip hop tunes ...more like jazzamatazz project

a little dated today I expect

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and a strong back cover since we were talking about that

Mjk0Mi5qcGVn.jpeg


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so appears therea re three Krsh albums in 1994 - this one with ROnnie Jordan, then this one on Mo Wax called Strictly Turntablized

and this one that came out in Japan called Krush


I remember hearing this track Kemuri everywhere
 
Faust's comeback album Rien was 1994. Produced by Jim O'Rourke and featuring Keiji Haino. Minimalist drone grooves. Not revolutionary but I'm there for it.

 
Speaking of Keiji Haino there's Beginning and End, Interwoven. You know the drill - always brace yourself for a zen nihilist assault on the ears before playing.

 
Robert Leiner - Visions of the Past


System 7 - Point 3 (Fire Album)


System 7 - Point 3 (Water Album)

Tempted to say the Fire album was dance music & the Water album was ambient but that's not really the case. Both a good mix of the two styles.
 
Rafael Toral - Sound Mind Sound Body.
Excellent Portuguese ambient with big influences from Stars of the Lid, Robert Fripp, Eno type drone etc .Aside from the third track which is a somewhat over long plucking type thing its a really good album and a surprise find.

 
hitmouse said:
I should really get around to giving Illmatic another go, I remember listening to it years and years back and thinking "has a few OK tunes but it's basically just fucking jazz". Which may not be a completely fair or accurate summary.
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OK, I gave Illmatic a listen the other day, knowing I love it already, and I'll try to explain why. Firstly it's only 40 minutes long, very short for a hip hop album, and so it doesn't drift. There's also a consistency I like, with no one outstanding track dominating the others. With Jeru's The Sun Rises... I like it all, but I get especially excited for Come Clean.

I always tend to think that hip hop albums work best with a single producer (early Wu, Snoop and Dre, the first two Beasties albums), because there's a constant theme. Despite Illmatic having numerous people twiddling the knobs, Nas himself maintains a rhythm that I think makes the album work like a cohesive whole.
 
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