Machines Do Have Hearts

In 2002 I purchased a fantastic compilation called Rough Trade Electronic 01. Put together by the staff of London's cult record shop Rough Trade, it was "not an Electronic Greatest Hits' Compilation, (but) rather a reflection of some of the revolutionary music which has passed through (their) shops on its way to good homes". And whilst it was perhaps not a direct attempt to track the history of electronic music, it has done a highly commendable job of it nonetheless, starting way back in 1960 with Rod Freeman's aptly named 'I Hear A New World'. The tracklist is on point, and the sequencing is often inspired - check the 1967 ad for headache tablets "Bufferin" segueing into that Smiths cover.

It introduced me to, and encouraged me to dig deeper through the back-catalogues of acts such as Autechre, New Order, Kraftwerk, Stereolab, Can and Kraftwerk, and was instrumental in my realisation that there was warmth in what I had previously thought one of the coldest genres of music.

Up until this compilation I had solely known The Human League for their one inescapable hit, however Being Boiled helped me see them in an entirely new light. Two years prior to this Richard X had taken Being Boiled, overlayed TLC's No Scrubs, and released the bootleg as Girls On Top - Being Scrubbed. However, instead of being prosecuted he was hunted down to produce some of the great pop tracks of the last decade, including Annie- Chewing Gum, Sugababes - Freak Like Me (which was previously another Girls On Top bootleg), and his own Finest Dreams featuring Kelis. Hence the man is a certified pop genius in my books.

X's 2004 compilation Back To Mine was a favourite of mine at the time. The RA review said it sounded like a mixtape you found in the back of your car in 1985, but that was largely what I liked about it. Plus the fact that such obvious pop songs (Kelis, Goldfrapp) could share record space with lost electronic pieces from yesteryear.

I am also in debt to Richard, as this was my first introduction to John Carpenter (via his theme song from Assault On Precinct 13). It took me a little while to work out that he was infinitely more famous for being a movie producer than a music producer.

Whilst Assault From Precinct 13 is probably not Carpenter's greatest movie (critics prefer Halloween, I prefer Escape from New York), it is still good watch, and that theme tune is a corker.

As it turns out, I am not alone in thinking so. I had been trying to track down I-F's 1998 record Fucking Consumer since I heard the song Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass (which is as amazing as the title suggests) on Rough Trade's aforementioned Electronic 01. Thankfully, their record label saw fit to reissue it this year, and I was pleased to find that track 11, Assault On Radical Radio, is a Carpenter tribute. It takes a Precinct 13 inspired/jacked synthline and reimagines it as a nighttime stormer which does Carpenter proud.

Downloads:
Rough Trade - Electronic 01

Richard X feat Kelis - Finest Dreams
Annie - Chewing Gum
Sugababes - Freak Like Me

Richard X - Back To Mine

John Carpenter - Assault on Precinct 13 (movie - mp4)

I-F - Fucking Consumer (Part 1 / Part 2)