Tuesday 10 August 2010

Josh Wink 'Higher State Of Consciousness'

Chart Peak: 8

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Philadelphia's own Josh Wink creates "unique sounds of music ranging from ambient to deep house and from acid jazz to so experimental electronic grooves"... This cut was huge on import and then became a Top 10 pop hit on official release.

I was quite pleased at the opportunity to buy Now 32 for 50p. For one thing, it settled my indecision as to which of the three 1995 Now albums I should cover on this blog, and for another it included a few tracks that I wouldn't have minded having my own copies of. The one thing that gave me slight pause was the realisation that I'd get stuck with this song that I've already written about on Now 34 (surely the fastest repeat in the history of the series?) and which I've never liked anyway. There was one silver lining though, in that at least I could check which version I was getting here: it seems to be the radio edit from the original UK single, which is logical enough. Unlike the original and the now more familiar 1996 remix, this version has overdubbed vocals (by Sonique, according to Wikipedia), though not the sort of obviously after-the-event verses and choruses that tend to be tacked onto dance records. Most of it is actually wordless, until the word "consciousness" begins to appear and takes over the track, as well as a few other impressionistic phrases. And I have to admit, it does make the song sound a bit more palatable, which was presumably the whole point of doing it. Mind you it's also fairly short.

I still wouldn't say I liked it (after all, I disliked this version before I'd heard the other one) but I feel sort of relieved that it wasn't as bad as I expected.

In a curiously topical postscript, the current Number One single at time of writing doesn't sound a million miles from a vocal version of this. Hope I don't get anyone sued there.

Another version of this track appears on: Now 34
Available on: Pete Tong Essential Classics [2CD]

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