THERE’S to be no rest for the wickedly, insistently, incisively funky: A Certain Ratio, with the deservedly acclaimed ACR: Loco (our review, here) and a slew of excellent postscriptual EPs under their belts this past year, paying tribute to Denise Johnson, Andrew Weatherall and just generally deep and insistent, exploratory funk listening – and a tour of the UK and France beginning in just a few short weeks (see below for dates) – are releasing a full remixes album, Loco Remezclada, come November 5th; and you can watch the video for Speedy Wunderground guru Dan Carey’s remix of “Down & Dirty” right herein.
Dan takes the original and handles it with reverence but ups the subliminal trippiness, with plenty of spaciness to fall into deep in the mix; Denise Johnson, God rest, is proud and declamatory, bringing the message from a track arising from a post-album wrap jam, riding high; drums thrum. What more could you ask for on a desultory October morning? Funk rays breaking through.
Dan says: “When I was a teenager, I was out in Manchester and spotted a poster that said something about A Certain Ratio remixed by Norman Cook. At the time I didn’t really know what a remix was, who Norman Cook was, or who/what A Certain Ratio was, but somehow I knew it was worth investigating. As a result, I discovered ACR, figured out what remixes were, and started trying do my own.
“I’ve loved ACR ever since, and got pretty involved in production and remixing, so it meant a lot being asked to do this. It also meant a lot to work with one of the last vocal tracks that Denise recorded.”
The visual dimension comes courtesy Rollcam Directors and producer Joe Vickers, who take that central tenet of the song, “It’s time to work it out, we can work it out” as a lense for our current societal fracture – and takes time to offer thanks to our real heroes.
Joe says: “There’s the need for the NHS in society, and the strain it has come across in the pandemic.
“It’s not acknowledged, you can’t just clap to acknowledge it. Especially when the MPs are getting these huge raises.”
Elsewhere on Loco Remezclada expect remixes from Halifax’s The Orielles, hometown electro priestess Lonelady, Sink Ya Teeth, Maps, Skream and more. ACR say of the remixing roster chosen for the new set: “We took time to consider who we’d like to have involved, who we admired, who we love hanging out with; who we couldn’t wait to hear what they came up with.”
And as a general maxim for living forward in times which remain so troubled, they add the following: “It’s time to reprogram. Learn to trust, love, support, and listen to the people around us. We want to live in a world where empathy triumphs over hate and fear.”
Those forthcoming dates; click through on the hyperlink for tickets and more details. The British leg will see support from The Emperor Machine.
November 3rd, 2021, Huddersfield, The Parish;
November 4th, Newcastle, St Dom’s Social Club;
November 5th, Manchester, Gorilla;
November 6th, Stoke-on-Trent, The Sugarmill;
November 7th, York, The Crescent;
November 9th, Birmingham, Hare & Hounds;
November 10th, Southampton, Engine Rooms;
November 11th, Brighton, CHALK;
November 12th, Bristol, The Exchange;
November 13th London, EartH, Hackney;
November 15th, Preston, The Ferrett;
November 16th, Leeds, The Warehouse, and
November 17th, Glasgow, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut.
November 18th, Rennes, L’Ubu;
November 20th, Brest, La Caréne (Festival Invisible);
November 23rd, Lorient, Hydrophone;
November 24th, Nantes, Le Stereolux;
November 25th, Bordeaux, Barbey Rock School;
November 26th,, La Boule Noire;
November 27th, Besançon, La Rodiz;
November 28th, Lille, L’Aeronef.
And into next year: ACR will be appearing at the 2022 edition of the Rockaway Beach Festival, to be held in Bognor Regis from January 7th to 9th; and at Liverpool’s Futurama Festival next April 16th.
A Certain Ratio’s Loco Remezclada will be released on November 5th on double clear vinyl, triple sparkle vinyl, CD and digitally – flex your PayPal on a pre-order and secure your preferred format here.
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