Description
The Rekids-affiliated Pyramids Of Mars imprint is set to really take off in 2013, with a string of unique releases already in the pipeline. For this special remix package, label bosses Matt Edwards and James Masters have brought in NYC house legend Joaquin ‘Joe’ Claussell to re-imagine The Machine’s debut album ‘RedHead’ from 2010. But make no mistake, this isn’t any ordinary remix project – All the tracks have been reproduced, rewritten, dubbed, performed and mixed by Joe, with the help of a group of musicians.
On ‘Contintental Drift’, Claussell maintains the mystical, hypnotic atmosphere of the original, adding in piano flourishes before the track transforms into a jazz fusion jam. Opening Ceremony (Fuse) channels the spirit of Herbie Hancock with a funky jazz organ rock-out backed by a mechanical broken beat. Leopard Skin is a much more percussion-driven affair, with handclaps, cowbells and chants all underpinned by a 909 Kick to make a highly danceable track. On Spell Bound, Claussell slows the tempo down to a trippy 3/4 time signature, creating a psychedelic collage of broken beats and wailing electric guitars that sounds like the bastard child of a Massive Attack / Jimi Hendrix collaboration. Fans of Claussell’s soulful, uplifting house records will feel more at home with his take on Talking Dolls – a mixture of tribal, ethnic percussion and feel-good keyboards, while Root People is a surreal mixture of rolling drum solos and blues harmonica.
Last November, an exclusive 24” x 24” boxset version of the release was launched at London’s LN-CC store as part of a special Pyramids Of Mars event. Only 50 copies were made available, each hand-painted personally by Misha Holenbach. The event also showcased Misha’s collection of screen prints for The Machine project as well as a DJ set provided by Quiet Village. Following a successful event, the reworked album is now being released in its own right. Just like the original, the artwork comes courtesy of Misha Hollenbach of Perks and Mini, and the vinyl release comes as a special triple-LP package.
