Renegade Soundwave

A two-disc compilation that?s as good a starting point for the newcomer as any, RSW 1987-1995 makes a great case for Renegade Soundwave as the great lost English band of the late eighties and early nineties. Divided up between a vocal and instrumental (mostly) half, each disc is more or less chronological and succeeds on its own ? together it?s nearly unstoppable. Curious to say, but compared to, say, a fair amount of the Britpop hype that burst the year the compilation finishes up, Renegade Soundwave was at once very specifically English ? Gary Asquith?s declamatory speak-sing-MC work never hid its accent for a start ? and very modern as well. Hip-hop and dub was turned into massive industrial beats and stomps like few others could attempt ?Kray Twins? easily rivals and possibly betters a fair amount of mid-eighties Def Jam explosions alone), avoiding the forced modernism of the likes of the Age of Chance for something more cutting and fierce. Besides the basic hits per se ? ?Kray Twins,? ?Biting My Nails,? ?Women Respond to Bass,? ?Thunder,? ?Probably a Robbery? ? there are a fair amount of B-sides and rarer and new remixes as well for the hardcore fan with all four albums (counting The Next Chapter of Dub). Two separate mixes of ?Cocaine Sex? turn up (the ?turbo lust mix? is indeed quite lewd), a fantastic revamp of ?Biting My Nails? from 1990 and one of Leftfield?s best ever efforts, a loping, snarling crawl through ?Renegade Soundwave,? are among the best. The further inclusion of such unfairly less well known tracks as ?The Phantom,? an absolute stormer that seems to have barely aged any, and the John Williams-sampling ?Deadly? is even more for a reason to listen. ~ Ned Raggett, All Music Guide