The headlines here are tracks from the late '90s by French duo Impulsion (AKA Christophe Monier and Pascal R) getting reworked by two members of the house music Hall of Fame.
It's probably doing DJ Pierre a disservice to call his take on "The Trip" merely epic. A sprawling, 15-minute-long symphony, it takes the druggy acid thump of the original and turns it—initially at least—into glittering disco house. The original's soulful vocals are chopped up and thrust through filters, a dubby Love Unlimited Orchestra-style orchestral sweep is put on loop and a muted funk guitar lick does battle with a deep, fluid bassline. Then, around the ten-minute mark, it seems to head off gently into the run-out groove… before turning back on itself and reappearing as an acid-flavoured dub with nasty handclaps and military snares. You can't imagine playing the whole thing out, mind.
The Kings of Tomorrow "Ghetto Mix" of "Higher," the first of two reworkings by Sandy Rivera, is a mid-paced old school deep shuffle, with liquid synths that bubble up in increasing intensity; the Sanjay Dub of the same track strips away much from its predecessor, leaving in a vocal loop, chattering Rhodes, languid snares and hi-hat. Just for luck, Micronautics leave in the original mix of their own "'Ouse Musiq," a bass-heavy, acid sunrise of didgeridoo and warm pads.
