DJ Alex Corton – Vinyl Reviews

Good Looking Records

Bukem & The Peshay – 19.5

1994

We move on..forward bound, to our next review and like clockwork, another classic atmospheric jungle track is upon us. Good Looking Records quite honestly provided us with nothing but trophy after trophy with the releases in the mid 90’s. Each one has only gained more and more appreciation over time which only goes to show just how creative, and innovative the production was. It was also a period of risks, trials and errors and stretching the given availability of the equipment. 1994 had the sepia reel of the past merged with the 3D of the future. The many paths that spun off this year were vast, but when you raved and heard the music played in one night, it really was a togetherness of variety and love. The record buying was certainly becoming more exciting as trying to keep up with the styles, became an extra gear on the wheel of vinyl addiction. You needed to have a stronger artillery in the DJ booth. That being said, if today’s release was nestled (or rather glued to be honest), in the record box, you would be cleared through customs without a second glance. 

   Bukem was steering the Good Looking ship with the sails up, bellowing with the tail wind by this time. The course had been set and GLR was handing out opportunities to the selected talents on the islands he was visiting. Peshay had been releasing tunes under the wings of Bay B Kane, Dave Charlesworth, Roger Johnson (RIP) and Bizzy B and was now connected with Danny for today’s prized possession. The results are impressive to say the least. 

   So why 19.5 as a title? Well I have a feeling it must be related to sound, but this is what the take may be, unless Paul ‘Peshay’ can spin some other secret details on it?:

  “Some sound designers and music producers might incorporate infrasound elements, including frequencies around 19.5 Hz, to create a sense of tension or unease, particularly in genres like horror or suspense.

   While direct, audible tones at 19.5 Hz might not be ideal, the subtle presence of infrasound could contribute to the overall mood and immersive experience of a piece of music or a film”

  And there you were thinking that on modern times, 19.5 might mean that’s it’s the average IQ of the 3 DJ’s dressed as tubes of toothpaste prancing around with cocks out, trying to bum each other, or the number of minutes that the DJ has to fiddle with the mixer in a 20 minute set (playing 120 tunes). Well you may be right there also, ha ha. What a contrast in worlds we live in. Let’s return to reality. The real deal.

   Side A is ‘19.5’ and once the track starts, you’ll be sent into a higher level of awareness. The beginning chords, strings and vocal wail are a monumental arrangement that pits the soul of all things good. As the beats bulldoze through they carry a bassline that pinballs your lungs around your ribcage while balancing perfectly with the rest of the track. Taking the brilliant “ooooh yeah!” which I’m sure the Omni Trio fans will recognize too, Bukem & Peshay bring to the table one of those flames that thaws the walls of ice from one hundred miles away. Everything about the pure quality of all the pieces that make this tune sound impressive are mastered with killer precision and some of the most unreal bass frequencies you’ll ever hear. 

  On the flip we have ‘19.5 (Reprisal)’ which is a track that has that rarity of beginning with a bass line. The weight of it is (like the other side) consistently breaking the scales and fractures skeletons in countries the opposite side of the world. This alternative mix of 19.5 is one that rolls the amens out a little more, and adjusts your mood to a certain degree of intensity and depth that sauté’s the jungle sounds with those deeper connections. I truly admire both versions of this track, the first side for its raw pounding flavors and this side for the build to that sucrose fed breakdown. Unreal music from two pioneering legends in the scene. 

   Bukem’s label was eight releases in and all you needed to do when you saw the logo on the wall behind the desk in the record store was point and say “I’ll have that”. You could not go wrong and lo and behold, you’d have timeless and preserved music that remains today, some of the best you’ll ever have.