Sock Free Hideaway

BEATS OF LOVE 

 7.  Orange Coloured Liquid by Spooky 

WHEN RADIO Otherway played Spooky's Land Of Oz it had me scouring the shelves to find my copy. It's no great coincidence to then see Young Marco and Rush Hour's Christiaan Macdonald compile the same duo on their superlative double long-player Planet Love Vol One. All manner of things tends to happen in two's.   

Progressive House is now a dirty word, but it was a natural response by musicians influenced by the many simultaneous dance music off-shoots of the day. It's aged better than most of them, and unlike many more blinkered artists, Spooky delivered a slightly patchy but proper album, the highlight of which is undoubtedly this track.

 

Normally, with a comp of this quality, I get more drawn to the music I don't pre-own. In this case, I'm instead drawn to the records already on my shelves. For now, at least. Glam's My Mother Said is a prime example of why I'm not a good DJ as I totally overlooked the Cosmic Trance mix. Thankfully, because of this oversight, my copy is still practically mint. On any other comp, this would be my highlight, but on this it has to settle for the best intro instead. 

Spooky for me are the highlight. After taking their album down from the shelves and I saw the track-listing, I didn't know what to expect. I haven't until now played it in years. The spoken word sample still works a treat, and the song sounds much trippier than I recall. Pre-dating a lot of acts who had far wider critical acclaim for making similar music. Either the best camp-fire musical ode to Tomato Soup ever or celestial inspired higher plane sounds, it is a slow-burner well worth discovering or re-discovering.

I compiled this track on a cassette tape along with Amorphous Androgynous and Dreamfish tracks, amongst other intimate spins, and played it loudly in my mate's car, hoping some promoter would be standing outside Crompton's Post-Office carpark and talent spot me. Instead, I just got funny looks from middle-aged housewives who are now either dead or really old.

I think it sounded better on my cassette than their LP, but predictably it sounds better still on this comp. Basically, if you're anti-comp and want to pretend to have discovered it first, buy the LP proper.

If, like the rest of us, you can on occasion accept the natural order of things, buy the comp as it's cheaper and there are many other celestial inspired sounding treats in store for you. With yet another great Steele Bonus sleeve design to marvel at whilst it's spinning.

                     https://selector.news/2021/04/26/safe-trip-planet-love-vol-1/