Tom Findlay: Watch the Ride
Tom Findlay's Watch The Ride out on Sept 24th
Monday, 24, Sep 2007 01:05
Harmless, out Sept 24th
In a nutshell.
You scratch my records, I'll scratch yours
What's it all about?
Following on from the Scratch Perverts' efforts, Tom Findlay is given the chance to show how his DJ-ing skills measure up across a multitude of new styles in this, the second
instalment of the Watch the Ride series from Harmless Records.
So, we have more than a dozen contemporary dance music tracks sourced from across the globe, kicking off with the laidback and atmospheric Scandinavian beats of Lindstrom and going on to include offerings from Kaos, Greenskeepers and Claude Von Stroke as well as remixes of a couple of tracks from the Aliens, formed out of the remains of cult favourites the Beta Band.
Interspersed between the disco and drum and bass tunes are tracks from Findlay's own side-project, Sugardaddy.
Who's it by?
While no doubt well known in global DJ circles, Tom Findlay is best known for being one half of Groove Armada.
In between working with Kylie Minogue on material for her new album, Findlay has been putting Groove Armada on hold recently, joining forces with funk maestro Tim Hutton on the pair's Sugardaddy project with its declared mission of creating dance music with a 'black' 80s edge to it.
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
Through Groove Armada, Findlay is no stranger to chart success or critical recognition. The group's Superstylin' single was nominated for a Grammy Award back in 2001, while their Best Of album peaked at number six in the UK charts.
However, this latest offerings looks likely to do nothing more than sit quietly alongside the numerous mix albums on offer and perhaps tide Mr Findlay over until the pay check from Kylie comes through.
What others say
"The second installment of Harmless Recording's Watch The Ride series has moments of brilliance, but fails to strike a chord." Stranger Magazine
"Tom Findlay from Groove Armada remixes some favourites into this 15 track playlist with pretty impeccable results." Manchester Music
So is it any good?
It's not bad. It starts off well enough, building up to the album's highlight, the guitar-riff driven Chasing My Tail. That this track, along with two of the other stand-out numbers are by Sugardaddy suggests that Findlay could perhaps have been better off including more of his own material rather than trying to put his own twist on other people's work.
Most impressive is the fact that in just 15 tracks, this Watch the Ride collection manages to take in funk, hip hop, disco and drum and bass without the joins being too apparent, a testament to Findlay's mixing abilities.
However, if this could have been managed through a more ruthless track selection, the album could have been rather quite good rather than losing its way at around the halfway point as it does, particularly with the closing track Yah! - probably the low point.
5/10
David Hewitt