Bleep

Across California in the early ‘90s, DJ culture was shaped at backyard parties, in warehouses, on regional radio shows, and in the hands of local scenes. Because of the decidedly DIY approach to scene building, acid breakbeats and psychedelic house weren’t treated as passing trends, but era-defining monuments by and for locals. One of those defining pillars came in 1994 from Central Fire, a collaboration out of the Bay Area between DJ Spun and Courtney Nielsen that would come to crystallise the breakbeat movement and cement it for decades to come.

Nearly thirty years on from its initial release, the duo’s defining classic This Is A Shout Going Out continues to find new ears thanks to a reissue from Mint Condition, a new London label determined to excavate the outer fringes of classic House and Techno scenes. The “fringe” aspect here must be its localized initial release from San Francisco outfit Twitch Recordings considering Shout’s three tracks explode with a bubbly directness that would be hard to call outsider fare.

'This Is A Shout Going Out' (Into The Future Mix) opens the set on a subtle Roland TB-303 bassline before issuing breaks on top of mutating breaks. Jim Hopkins streamlines the original with his Sliced and Diced Mix, but keeps it jam-packed even after a bit of tailoring. On the b-side, 'Central Fire (Yes People It's Time Pt.1 and 2)’ unfurls gloriously across thirteen minutes with an infectious flute melody, funk guitar samples, frenzied record scratching, and a vocal breakdown in the second half that pushes things into psychedelic territory. Remastered and reissued with the blessings of Spun and Nielsen, Shout solidifies itself as a prescient document of breakbeat history while offering a warm glimpse into the home-grown embrace of dance music across California’s backyards and warehouses.