A key record of the 1990s, Exit Planet Dust invented the big-beat style that dominated British dance music in the second half of the decade, and it still sounds superb in its own right. Skull-crunching hip-hop loops, fuzz guitar, insistently repetitive spoken samples and thunderous basslines make up the blueprint for one of the most instantly energising albums ever recorded. Many of the titles--"Chemical Beats", "Fuck Up Beats", "Chico's Groove"--are fairly self-explanatory. Others show a level of erudite humour; "Song To The Siren" filches the name of a Tim Buckley ballad for a track more in keeping with the mysteries of a car alarm, while "One Too Many Mornings" is nothing that Bob Dylan would recognise in a hurry. Collaborations with Beth Orton ("Alive Alone") and the Charlatans' Tim Burgess ("Life Is Sweet") add human voices to the brilliant mechanical formula. --David Bennun
Track Listing
Leave Home In Dust We Trust Song To The Siren Three Little Birdies Down Beats Fuck Up Beats Chemical Beats Chico's Groove One Too Many Mornings Life Is Sweet Playground For A Wedgeless Firm Alive Alone
