Preceded by an album party launch at London ‘s End and AKA complex that saw Joaquin ‘Joe’ Claussel headline The End’s main room for the first and the last time ever and Maurice Fulton head up the AKA, the Need2Soul crew kickstarts what is a reluctant diaspora for the home crowd by releasing a second volume of tunes synonymous with the clubnight and co-host Benji B’s weekly radio show.
Recently The End and its sister venue, the AKA announced that both clubs will be closing those legendary metal doors for good in January 2009 after satisfying the party crowd for a respectable 13 years. Although it’s not clear where those organising future events will lead their house-loving exodus, past promised lands have included Cargo, Fabric, Canvass and The Key. Unless of course, the milk and honey stop flowing entirely and the clubnight similarly disappears into the ether. But that seems unlikely given the popularity of the events and their eager list of alternative venues. Afterall, have-House will travel.
Building on the previous nuts and bolts selection put together by house dons Ron Trent Jerome Sydenham earlier this year, Underground and B create a seamless mesh of tunes that take in soul, disco, African and smooth and slinky soul. Gilles Peterson collaborator and Radio 1 Exta host, Benji B supplies the more surprising and erratic choices of the two, starting with the funky, finger-slapping elementary school gospel ‘Stand on the Word’ from the Celestial Choir, expanding it with a dash of rubbery, Detroit Tech (Rick Wilhite’s ‘Ruby Nights’) and coating it with a generous sprinkling of soulful lunar love (Womack and Womack’s ‘Conscious of My Conscience’). Not that it’s a tale of cities by any means, as there’s plenty to bridge the divide between the discs, not least the flurry of salubrious Latin beats that both DJs provide.
Naturally, Glen Underground’s selections are the more predictable of the two, but when expectations are as high as this, that’s not necessarily a bad thing – the silky and syncopated jiggery-pokery of YMC’s ‘Nu Vibrations’ providing a soft and velvety lining and Fini Dolo’s ‘Blow’ (remixed by Phil Asher) adding a dash of the demon.
With a couple of exclusive tunes and unreleased material hewn from the original Need2Soul clubnights thrown in as a bonus, it’s a fresh and lively enough selection, and a timely reminder that sound travels best on the underground.