On the eve of its 10th anniversary, secretsundaze are proud to present their 3rd double mix CD mixed by residents and founder members, James Priestley and Giles Smith. As an added bonus for those picking up one of the first 500 copies of the CD, there’s a chance of finding a free ticket inside for a selected number of secretsundaze parties over the summer.
The story is well documented but just to recap secretsundaze has maintained its position as bastion of underground house, techno and disco in London and for many, is considered the godfather of the UK’s daytime events. Started in 2002 by a group of school friends who tired of the lack of parties in east London combining quality electronic music with unique locations. The focus on open-air venues with natural daylight, a rarity at the time, with the forward thinking musical policy, proved to be a heady combination. In just a few years the party was catapulted to notoriety with crowds swelling from a few hundred to a few thousand, initially through word of mouth and then as it became the media’s darling.
10 years on and secretsundaze has spread worldwide with regular shows at European hotspots such as Panorama Bar, Robert Johnson, Fabric, Trouw Amsterdam, Barcelona’s La Terrrazza, infamously in Ibiza and even further afield, in Tokyo and NYC. Not forgetting their regular London events – this year’s opening party having sold out over a week before the event. Fortunately, secretsundaze isn’t just a party these days, their unique sound furthered by both it’s new booking agency, The Secret Agency which looks after almost 20 hand-picked artists and the eponymous record label which has recently begun releasing original EPs.
So having brought the unitiated up to speed, ‘10 years of secretsundaze’ is a both a retrospective and a culmination of what the founders intended the party to be – the music, the energy and its history.
James once again guides the listener from the first moments as the doors open, through the sunny (or not so sunny) afternoons and finally onto those longing closers, always exemplifying his eclectic tastes with it’s strong house sensibility. In this way he comes as close as possible in capturing those Sunday session’s spirit of reckless abandon. The mix begins patiently with recent releases from Mark E and 2010 whiz kid Space Dimension Controller, before picking up the pace, moving into steadier garagey territory, with tracks from George Levings’ (Commix) GHL moniker and Parisian Frank Roger. Being the party’s 10th anniversary celebration, it was only right to include some of James’ favourites, played mostly in the formative years of the club, but still sounding as fresh and relevant in his sets today. There’s the little-known gem ‘Taking Over Me’ by Marcus Intalex + S.T. Files, Recloose’s off kilter broken beat ‘Ain’t Changin’ and the Detroit inspired sub-heavy proto-UK bass ‘Cargo’ from Zed Bias’ alter- ego Maddslinky. Once peaked, the mix heads into more distinctive electronic territory, with contributions from Jimmy Edgar as Xdistrict and the simply stunning ‘Tan Sedan’ from DJ Harvey’s latest project. This is a massive licensing coup as, to this date, only Optimo’s Fabric mix has been granted the use of material from Locussolus. Metope and Steffi are responsible for taking things down into deeper, headier territory, before a sneaky ‘one-more’ with Voyage’s 1980 underground bomb ‘I Love You Dancer’ drawing things warmly to a heartfelt close.
Giles’ love of the sheer craft of a mix is clear to see: his podcasts for Resident Advisor, Audio Families and most recently Little White Earbuds are highly regarded as perfect illustrations of his uncompromising, slow-building style. Just like his contributions to the previous secretsundaze mixes he kicks off with exquisitely warm dubby house from Roosevelt and Charles, Chicago’s Specter and Detroit legend Dan Bell in his KB Project guise. Picking up the tempo slightly Giles weighs in with some bonafide secretsundaze classics in the shape of the Salt City Orchestra remix of ‘Mushrooms’ and Dubtribe’s remix of East West Connection. The dreamy yet insistent ‘Hideaway Lane’ on the excellent Dial subsidiary Laid then makes way for some heavier techno workouts and arguably the mix’s peak with the slamming MRSK remix of Anthony Shakir closely followed by the massive burner, Rolando’s remix of Skudge. Smoothing things out again, Giles’ own ‘Ronin’ deftly appears marking the return of his production duo Two Armadillos with long-term collaborator Martin Dawson. Triumphant Detroit flavours from Steven Tang and Tornado Wallace then permeate, signaling the end is in sight before making way for a return to some very deep and hypnotic closers from the Smallville camp, the aptly titled ‘Life Aquatic’ and ‘Insulate’, an otherworldly groove from US artists Slam Mode.
10 Years of secretsundaze’ is yet another perfect snapshot of the duo’s ability to throw together undiscovered classics with the newest, freshest sounds without ever compromising to trends. With a supporting world tour heading through Berlin, Barcelona, New York, Tokyo and Ibiza to name just a few, the label primed with a whole slew of 12” releases to come and The Secret Agency going from strength to strength, 2011 is set to be yet another blow-out year for secretsundaze’s 10th birthday.
artist: James Priestley + Giles Smith
title: 10 Years of secretsundaze
label: secretsundaze, UK.
format: CD
release: 15.07.11
TRACKLIST
James Priestley
01. DJ Ageishi & Ackin’ – Rain Parade (Mark E Remix) – Internasjonal
02. Space Dimension Controller – Transatlantic Loading Bay – R&S
03. GHL – Show Me Love – Electric Minds
04. Rootstrax – Harlequin – Deeply Rooted House
05. Marcus Intalex + S.T. Files – Taking Over Me – Hospital Records
06. Franck Roger – My Name Is – FR Production
07. Recloose – Ain’t Changin – Planet E
08. Maddslinky – Cargo – Laws of Motion
09. Ghetto Brothers – Ghetto Disco – Royal Oak
10. Xdistrict – Color Correction (Losoul Rmx) – Playhouse
11. Locussolus – Tan Sedan – International Feel Recordings
12. Metope – I’m So Ready + Cpu-Circus (Ada Remix) – Areal Records
13. Steffi feat. Elif Biçer – Kill Me (Crushed Soul Mix) – Ostgut Ton
14. Voyage – I Love you Dancer – Sirocco
Giles Smith
01. Roosevelt and Charles – Monastery – Mojuba Special Edition
02. Specter – Make Me Feel – Tetrode
03. KB Project – Feel It – Elevate
04. Marshall Jefferson vs. Noosa Heads – Mushrooms (Salt City Orchestra’s Out There mix) – Airtight
05. East West Connection featuring Maiya James – Find a Way (Dubtribe Soundsystem dub) – Chilli Funk
06. Dinky – Polvo – Ostgut Ton
07. RNDM – Hideaway Lane (dub) – Laid
08. Anthony Shakir – Travellers (MRSK remix) – Rush Hour
09. Skudge – Ontic (Rolando Understands remix) – Skudge
10. Two Armadillos – Ronin – Unreleased
11. Steven Tang – Ominous – Emphasis
12. Tornado Wallace – Always Twirling – Delusions of Grandeur
13. Smallpeople and Christopher Rau – Life Aquatic – Smallville
14. Slam Mode – Insualte – Desvio
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