Artists
Biography
"If their eventual success seems effortless, it has been a long time coming. Basement Jaxx's own label, Atlantic Jaxx, has been releasing a steady stream of credible underground releases for years - tunes such as Ibiza classic 'Samba Magic' or The Heartists' hit 'Belo Horizonti'."- Music Week
"Basement Jaxx have always been special. A handful of devastatingly original club anthems ('Samba Magic', 'Fly Life' and The Heartists' 'Belo Horizonti') from their Atlantic Jaxxl abel; a compilation that's better than most people's debut albums; remixes for the Pet Shop Boys, INXS and Reprazent; a frothed-about monthly night in Brixton and ringing endorsements from the likes of Thomas Bangalterand Armand Van Helden." -Muzik
"Disco, ragga, techno, flamenco, garage, breakbeat, funk-garage-Latin-jazz-cosmic calypso... an eternal, supersonic, choppy-seas boat-trip through the greatest dance sounds ever invented, and a spirit banished from late-Nineties clubland by the tyranny of seam-less, corporate sameness."-The Face
Indeed, 1999 was the year we all moved to the Basement. This year, the world was invited to get Rooty. But what happened before?
Where did it all come from? XL Recordings/Beggars Group are pleased to present, for the first time domestically, a collection of the tracks that took the Basement Jaxx from the underground to the overground - Atlantic Jaxx Recordings: A Compilation.
Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe met at a riverboat party on the Thames, and Basement Jaxx was formed shortly thereafter, as an illegal club night in a dodgy Mexican restaurant in Brixton - South London. The duo formed their own label in 1994, dubbing it Atlantic Jaxx- a forum to release their own unique blend of American-style house, laced with their own Latin-via-London sound. Their very first EP, released in 1994, featured 'Undaground', and quickly gathered attention in their homeland. Overseas, the track was championed by leading NYC DJ Tony Humphries, who featured them on his radio show. With their third EP, 1995's Summer Daze, that included the Ibiza anthem, 'Samba Magic' (featuring Corrina Joseph, who contributes 'Live Your Life With Me', and 'Lonely' to this set), the duo began to establish themselves as leaders in the world of exotic and groovy house, gathering fans such as Roni Size, Louis Vega (Masters At Work), Roger Sanchez, and Toronto's DJ Sneakalong the way.
In 1996, Felix and Simon took on remix projects for such artists as Roger Sanchez and the Pet Shop Boys, and also released the mon-ster club hit, 'Fly Life', whose ragga-tinged mixes propelled the group into the UK Singles chart for the first time. This track took them from the status of leaders of the classic house scene, to innovators of the "punk garage" style - a deft fusion of their influences, taking everything from robo-disco ('Set Yo Body Free') to jazz-fusion ('Daluma') into the mix.
Before signing to XL Recordings in 1998, and before the release of 1999's Remedy, and this year's Rooty, there was Atlantic Jaxx: A Compilation, an audio snapshot, documenting the historic journey of one of dance music's most influential duos.
"Basement Jaxx have always been special. A handful of devastatingly original club anthems ('Samba Magic', 'Fly Life' and The Heartists' 'Belo Horizonti') from their Atlantic Jaxxl abel; a compilation that's better than most people's debut albums; remixes for the Pet Shop Boys, INXS and Reprazent; a frothed-about monthly night in Brixton and ringing endorsements from the likes of Thomas Bangalterand Armand Van Helden." -Muzik
"Disco, ragga, techno, flamenco, garage, breakbeat, funk-garage-Latin-jazz-cosmic calypso... an eternal, supersonic, choppy-seas boat-trip through the greatest dance sounds ever invented, and a spirit banished from late-Nineties clubland by the tyranny of seam-less, corporate sameness."-The Face
Indeed, 1999 was the year we all moved to the Basement. This year, the world was invited to get Rooty. But what happened before?
Where did it all come from? XL Recordings/Beggars Group are pleased to present, for the first time domestically, a collection of the tracks that took the Basement Jaxx from the underground to the overground - Atlantic Jaxx Recordings: A Compilation.
Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe met at a riverboat party on the Thames, and Basement Jaxx was formed shortly thereafter, as an illegal club night in a dodgy Mexican restaurant in Brixton - South London. The duo formed their own label in 1994, dubbing it Atlantic Jaxx- a forum to release their own unique blend of American-style house, laced with their own Latin-via-London sound. Their very first EP, released in 1994, featured 'Undaground', and quickly gathered attention in their homeland. Overseas, the track was championed by leading NYC DJ Tony Humphries, who featured them on his radio show. With their third EP, 1995's Summer Daze, that included the Ibiza anthem, 'Samba Magic' (featuring Corrina Joseph, who contributes 'Live Your Life With Me', and 'Lonely' to this set), the duo began to establish themselves as leaders in the world of exotic and groovy house, gathering fans such as Roni Size, Louis Vega (Masters At Work), Roger Sanchez, and Toronto's DJ Sneakalong the way.
In 1996, Felix and Simon took on remix projects for such artists as Roger Sanchez and the Pet Shop Boys, and also released the mon-ster club hit, 'Fly Life', whose ragga-tinged mixes propelled the group into the UK Singles chart for the first time. This track took them from the status of leaders of the classic house scene, to innovators of the "punk garage" style - a deft fusion of their influences, taking everything from robo-disco ('Set Yo Body Free') to jazz-fusion ('Daluma') into the mix.
Before signing to XL Recordings in 1998, and before the release of 1999's Remedy, and this year's Rooty, there was Atlantic Jaxx: A Compilation, an audio snapshot, documenting the historic journey of one of dance music's most influential duos.