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One of the finest labels in progressive is about to celebrate its 10th anniversary, and to coincide with the festivities, label honcho John Digweed has decided to spoil us with a brand new Bedrock comp. Woohoo! Digweed needs no further introduction of course (unless you’ve been living in a remote cave for the past 15 years), so let’s focus on this release instead. This 3xCD comes with a total of 33 tunes that give a pretty good impression of the label’s back catalogue as well as tunes that currently represent the true Bedrock sound. Below is a review of the first two CD’s. Let’s check it out…

You can trust on Digweed churning out a brand new compilation every few months, bringing forth mixes that feature his developed proggy/minimal sound. And nine out of ten times it’s sheer genius. And how surprising, this release is another one that will grace your collection till the end of times. CD 1 opens with the Estroe mix of Fortunatro & Montresor’s Imagine, a warm and breaky progressive tune with mesmerizing synthesizers and a a delicious vibe, after which things engage on a more four-to-the-floor vibe with everyone’s favorite Pole Folder (Dust, turned into a deep throbbing psy-prog monster as we’re dealing with the Charlie Mayhem Cold Shoulder Dub here) and more minimal but simply brilliant tunes by Tom Mangan and Steve Lawler. Bedrock’s Santiago (Chab remix) takes you back to the heyday of progressive house, around the time when Digweed’s delivered his critically acclaimed Global Underground mix (GU 19, that is). Stomping kicks, roaring bass-lines and trancey synthesizers all the way!

The mix then switches back to, again, a more minimalistic feel with Digweed’s own Warung Beach (a fat rocking tune remixed by Jamie Stevens) and Bedrock’s Emerald (the Charlie Mayhem Seismic Dub featuring acid stabs and orbital synths). So far, this release has provided us with a slew of kick ass classic cuts bringing forth a majestic flow that’ll be of big effect in both the clubs as at home. Hottest track in this mix? Beautiful Strange by Bedrock (John Digweed & Nick Muir Even Stranger Mix) is definitely a track you just gotta check out if you like your house music nasty, although Guy J’s Save Me (James Talk remix) with its intensely rumbling bass-line will also drop your jaw as soon as it kicks in.

And then there’s CD 2, representing the future sound of Bedrock. The mix kicks off with the peak time banger Forge (Tom Middleton remix) by Bedrock, Guy J’s tech-trancey Lunar (with a freaky bass-line/synth synergy), and Jim Rivers’ recently released Empathy. However, the mix really engages into full on frenzy with Pushin Too Hard (Bruce Aisher remix) by Saints & Sinners. Although featuring a very commercial sound, this tune is no less than extremely hot and guaranteed to turn every club upside down with its epic melodies, intense energy and fierce rocking beats. Flyer Talk by Christian Smith is almost a trance track, while Paolo Mojo’s remix of Moonface’s U Get So Give provides the mix with an edgy 303 bass-line and vintage vox on the side.

After that, it seems that it’s time to rumble, with John Digweed and Nick Muir going bonkers on the drum machine on Aquatonic, whose beats and bass-lines are beyond ‘just cool’ (not to mention that extremely sexy bass-line…) A true highlight on this CD. Misstress Barbara and Tom Mangan go techno on y’all with the beat/drum-riddled K10 (Alan Fitzpatrick remix) and Chutney (Size 9 Reinterpretation) respectively, which are both perfect tracks to raise your level of adrenaline and clubbing urge. Guy Gerber’s Stoppage Time finishes the mix in style on a sea of synths to ease your mind.

We don’t wanna be kiss-asses or anything, but fact is that Digweed and Bedrock have again managed to churn out a mix compilation that has ‘collectors item’ written all over it. CD 1 reflects the ‘past’ sound of the label, lining up some proggy milestones that are still of big effect when played, while CD 2 provides a solid overview of in-fashion frenzy. The mixing on both CD’s is, why would it be any different, conducted in such a way that a non-stop flow is established, making this CD perfect to enjoy both at home or in your car on the way to the club. Any last words? Bedrock 10 is a must-have for any progressive house music fanatic, yet also a genuine overview of classic cuts of a genre that has been of big influence to electronic music as we know it today.

Track-list:

CD 1

1. Fortunatro & Montresor – Imagine (Estroe Remix)
2. Pole Folder & CP – Dust (Charlie Mayhem Cold Shoulder Dub)
3. Tom Mangan – Chutney (Tom Mangan 2008 Remix)
4. Steve Lawler – Rise`in (Steve Lawler Powder Powder Remix)
5. Bedrock – Santiago (Chab Remix)
6. John Digweed – Warung Beach (Jamie Stevens Remix)
7. Bedrock – Emerald (Seismic Dub)
8. Gutterstylz – Dirtbox (Bruce Aisher’s Resurrection Rewind)
9. Science Dept – Repercussion (Danny Howells Remix)
10. Bedrock – Beautiful Strange (John Digweed & Nick Muir`s  Even Stranger Remix)
11. Guy J – Save Me (James Talk Remix)
12. Bedrock – Heaven Scent (M.O.D.E. remix)

CD 2

1. Bedrock- Forge (Tom Middleton Remix)
2. Guy J – Lunar
3. Jim Rivers – Empathy
4. Saints & Sinners – Pushin Too Hard (Bruce Aisher Remix)
5. Christian Smith – Flyer Talk
6. Moonface – U Get So Give (Paolo Mojo Remix)
7. Shmuel Flash – Chilling Moments (Kazell Influx Audio Remix)
8. John Digweed & Nick Muir – Aquatonic
9. Misstress Barbara – K10 (Alan Fitzpatrick Remix)
10. Tom Mangan – Chutney (Size 9 Reinterpretation)
11. Guy Gerber – Stoppage Time (Outro Edit)

CD3 : Unmixed

1. Bradler & Dualton – Six Hours Later (Original Mix)
2. Pole Folder & CP – Dust (Charlie Mayhem Cold Shoulder Dub)
3. Fortunato & Montresor – Imagine (Estroe Remix)
4. Morgan Page & Gregory Shiff Feat Astrid Suryanto – All I Know (Jim Rivers Space Disco Remix)
5. Nick Muir – Gravitation
6. Steve Lawler – Rise In (Steve Lawler Powder Powder Remix Edit)
7. Bedrock – Santiago (Guy Gerber Hotrod Dub)
8. Funk D’Void & Toby Izui – Sensei
9. Pindrop – Madhouse
10. Guy J – Lunar (Late Night Friday Remix)

Bedrock (Label) Bedrock (UK)
Article on 365Mag.com