Origins - Foul Play (Sneaker Social Club)

Title: Origins 

Artist: Foul Play

Label: Sneaker Social Club

Cat Number: SNKRG001

Genre: Hardcore

1: Finest Illusion

2: Survival

3; Dubbing You

4: The Alchemist

5: Feel the Vibe (Again)

6: Feel The Vibe

7: Screwface

8: Ricochet

9: Ricochet (No Stopping The Remix)

10: Ragatere

This is a compilation of early EPs by Foul Play and, as such, serves as a valuable document of hardcore/rave during the early nineties. Within these grooves it’s possible to observe the transition from breaks to drum and bass which to an onlooker like myself is so subtle but so critical. Not to worry. There’s no doubt that the music collected here represents an important moment in electronic music history. The music is dark and loaded right form the start, not a second is wasted, each track being a compressed distillation of old skool hardcore vibes and all incorporated influences. The music must have sounded so far ahead of its time back then because it still does, even though the samples used induce a feeling of otherworldly familiarity partly because a lot of the auditory blueprint has become pervasive in pop over the last decade or so. There’s nothing here that doesn't scream innovation while, at the same time being very much of a time and place. Rewind to a warehouse or railway arch within easy access to a local council estate, while going fast forward into the future.