single // Heaven
Released on Mute's InterPop
sub-label in 1996, Neuronic brought together the
trio of Pascal Gabriel, Paul Statham
and vocalist Lisa Lamb for the first time. Unlike
the gorgeous electronic pop they would go on to produce as Peach,
Neuronic's solitary release showcases a more pop-dance style, something
that would have suited the more mainstream dancefloors of the mid-Nineties.
For Gabriel in particular, producing tracks for
the dancefloor was not unfamiliar territory, given his work with
S'Express and Bomb The Bass during
the first flushes of the Rhythm King label. Consequently
'Heaven' has a natural arms-in-the-air rapturousness, Lamb turning
in a decent gospel-tinged vocal while Gabriel and Statham craft
a track that seems to straddle the mid-Nineties predilection for
accessible pop-dance with deep housey pianos, a solid bassline,
some nice analogue-sounding segments and disco-style percussion.
Sadly this type of dance music hasn't aged terribly well, and 'Heaven'
isn't a terribly stand-out or memorable track from the time.
The release of 'Heaven' includes no less than eight
mixes, including three by Motiv 8 (aka Steve Rodway, never my favourite
producer given his overt euro-dance style); whilst his mixes aren't
bad by any stretch of the imagination, and they do seem to have
a bit more high-end going on than Neuronic's own muffled radio mix,
the three versions mine precisely the same vein that made his production
of Gina G's 'Ooh Aah.. Just A Little Bit' or his mix of the Spice
Girls' 'Wannabe' so embarrassingly asinine. Fellow InterPop act
The Brain turns in a heavy retread, all squelchy
acid riffs and manic 808 percussion that makes it stand apart from
the rest of the mixes here, even if at times Lamb's vocal feels
a little stranded and over-used.
Neuronic's own extended club remix reveals some
neat noises and emphasises the bouncy bass track, but suffers from
the fate of many old-school extended mixes where slowly building
up the track can make it a little tiring. The Paradise Club Mix
(also by Neuronic) ditches the vocal completely, and all but the
barest trace of the original track, and adds burbling filtered 303-esque
sounds to create a totally different, more frantic vibe. The trio's
Epilog Mix eschews the beats and bassline and instead turns the
track into a decent ambient track with choral vocal sounds not dissimilar
to those used on Moby's 'Hymn'.
It's fair to say that 'Heaven' does not in any way
scale the same heights as the trio would realise as Peach on their
annoyingly solitary album Audiopeach; it also highlights
that for every decent dancefloor-friendly track there were loads
of misfires also. Nevertheless, 'Heaven' serves as a pleasant enough
reminder of happy mid-Nineties nights spent on grotty dancefloors.
Good times.
Thanks to Andy for his help with this review.
12":
A1. Heaven (Extended Club Mix)
A2. Heaven (Radion Mix)
B1. Heaven (Paradise Club Mix)
B2. Heaven (The Brain Remix)
l12":
A1. Heaven (Motiv 8 Club Mix)
A2. Heaven (Motiv 8 Roksolid Dub)
B1. Heaven (Paradise Club Mix)
B2. Heaven (Motiv 8 Single Mix)
cd (lcd):
1. Heaven (Radio Mix)
2. Heaven (Motiv 8 Club Mix)
3. Heaven (Motiv 8 Roksolid Dub)
4. Heaven (Extended Club Mix)
5. Heaven (Paradise Club Mix)
6. Heaven (The Brain Remix)
7. Heaven (Epilog Mix)
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