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at a glance...
Hometown: London, England
Year Formed: 1996
Members:
Phil "The Albino Priest" -DJ
Martin "The Many Tentacles" -engineering, keyboards
Andy "One Man Crowd Called Gentile" -bass
Johnny "The Slammer" -drums
Matt "Sheriff John Stone" -keyboards
Notes:
The Lo Fidelity Allstars emerged from the bleary-eyed aftermath of acid house and the limping rave scene as vanguards of the new, eclectic and informed sound of dance music. Like their Skint label mate and fellow Brightonian, Fatboy Slim, the Lofis combine elements of rock, hip hop, trance, house, soul and techno in mad, outta-yer-face anthems. Unlike the glorious Mr. Slim, the Lo Fidelity Allstars are actually a band. Their original lyricist and designer (Dave, "The Wrekked Train") left the band Commitments-style after their initial whiffs of success, citing musical and personal differences. Their 1999 US debut, How to Operate With a Blown Mind, sold a quarter of a million copies, buoyed by the strength of Kool-Roc Bass', "Disco-Machine Gun," and the alt-rock radio hit "Battleflag." And they won a whole bunch of awards (e,g, Best New Band, 1998 NME awards) and went on tour with the Crystal Method and Orbital and got lots of critical praise and probably had a great time.
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Lo Fidelity Allstars
On the Floor at the Boutique
Skint, Released 1999
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I have this fantasy about going to a club and hearing the DJ spin old hip-hop tracks that I used to like in high school, mixed seamlessly into weird, funky Aphex Twin-type keepers with fierce, gigantic house on the way. That's what I want from DJs now - eclecticism. It used to be that four hours of trance could keep me going, but no more. Trance kinda sucks, dontcha' think? Sadly, it's hard to find clubs like this unless you're in Brighton. Brighton is the home of the Big Beat Boutique, ground zero for Fatboy Slim and the burgeoning big beat world conquest.
This disc is the second volume of the Big Beat Boutique mix-albums, following Fatboy Slim's hugely successful first effort. Selected and mixed by the Lo Fidelity Allstars' DJ Phil, "The Albino Priest" (but he's not albino?), you'll find Les Rythmes Digitales' "(Hey You) What's That Sound?" mixed into the Jungle Brothers' "Black is Black." And then there's the straight soul interlude, starting with Feelgood Factor's housey "The Whole Church Should Get Drunk" to Felice Taylor's 1968 track "I Can Feel Your Love" and finally The Tams' "Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy." There's also the weird, super-funk of Super Collider's "Darn (Cold Way O'Lovin)," a true original.
I saw the Lofis live when they toured with the Crystal Method and Orbital, and I liked how they worked it, no diggity. You got to bag them up. (The disc starts with the Black Street platinum seller, "No Diggity"). This is a great record - it'll make you want to take your shirt off and pour beer on your friends.
If you like Lo Fidelity Allstars, check out:
Lo Fidelity Allstars How to Operate With a Blown Mind
Fatboy Slim On the Floor at the Boutique, Vol. I
Fatboy Slim You've Come a Long Way, Baby
The Chemical Brothers Live At the Social, Vol. I
-- Peter Hanks
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