Come back bigbeat, all is forgiven!! Was reading an article by Damian Harris (aka Midfield general) in the Guardian on the demise of bigbeat n it got me in a mood to raid my old music files. What a mega feckn Genre it was, Pure energy, very creative. It struck me how you could have a Sitar in one track, thumping synths in another and still be in the same Genre. Took a huge pot, added all the best bits of Hip-Hop, Rock, acid house, folk,psychedelia, injected it with LSD, added a grenade and cooked it all up!

Bigbeat got alot of bad press in the early noughties as being "yob-music", and most of the Bigbeat artists jumped ship to the hollow Nu-breaks or ok electro house scenes or just gave up full stop!

For our heros the chems the true bigbeat days ended after come with us, some argue their last bigbeat album was DYOH.

One thing ive noticed,especially with the last album was the lack of big aggressive breakbeats in favour of a more stifling (and boring) 4:4 beat. Dont get me wrong, I love the psychedelic mayhem of we are the night, but for me its not as energetic or inspiring, beats n rhythm are another showcase to explore, slapping on an old uns uns uns for every track bores the head off me after awhile.

Prodigy and hyper amongst others last year brought out for all purposes "bigbeat albums" and met well with the critics, Could it be there might be a Bigbeat comeback? Wonder would the chems ever start making thundering breakbeats again. They make every album completly different, its one of the thing I like about them, but maybe just a bit more rhythm boys? What does everybody else think? 4:4 f. off? or yes to uns uns?

Yeah I really do miss Big Beat :( Thumping, angry, artful and powerful.

James and I (paqman) are trying to convince record labels that it is time for the big beat resurgence. it's right there in our letter of introduction and Bio...

we are keen to ride that wave from it's formation.

Good post morning-lemon. I like the bit where you describe the ingredients of big beat. That dash of grenade is ever so important!

That said, I'm not sure what to expect when it comes to the new Chems album. It's just not safe (for me) to make any predictions or have certain expectations on what it will sound like. The Chems have always looked on their past and you can hear their past - or this common, chemical thread - running through all their albums. They've never shut the door on it completely. But then again they've never been ones to back track. There's an evolution that takes place with each album. This isn't to suggest one life form is necessarily superior to the last since we all have our favorite albums. It's just that the music has taken on different forms as it's progressed over the years. Me personally, I love this musical progression over their musical career adn I've enjoyed that they've been able to transgress boundaries. As for big beat I recall the Chems not wanting to be pegged into any sort of genre, so I'm not too sure about any big beat comebacks. But hey, I really don't know! Great topic for discussion, though.

I think they have some crossovers now and then. Remember Come Inside which could be seen as Big Beatish or All Rights Reversed (more Breakbeat or Oldschool type if you want). Saturate has too Big Beat elements when the drum kit kicks in. I only whished they had put in that second part of the afore-said loop which they used as a filler segue between Saturate Live and Believe Live. That would have been marvelous! I like most of their latest work and it doesn't really matter much to me any longer whether they produce Big Beat or related music. But I would be positively surprised, if they touched that type of genre more often.

Aside from the chems, I do would love to hear much more Big Beat nowadays. What's better than a fresh thrashed and chopped beat along with awesome drum rolls (i love those in a breakbeat track, live in Block Rockin Beats)???!!!. I'm always digging the complexitiy of breakbeat over a foor on the floor beat because moste of the time you instantly have to wiggle your ass or nod your head to it.

bigbeat has to come back indeed. i totally don't like the stuff the once legendary label "skint" releases nowadays... :/

i have a (to my opinion) quite complete big beat collection, can you guys tell me what i really should check out? i already have:

- chemicals (of course :D)

- fatboy slim

- overseer

- propellerheads (their album was the most awesome thing EVER)

- the big beat elite series

- apollo 440

- bentley rythm ace

- midfield general

- bomb the bass

- david holmes

- the dust brothers (the reason why the chemicals had to change their name)

- the prodigy

- Fluke

- Freestylers

- hardknox

- The Wiseguys

- The Sabres Of Paradise

- Rob Dougan

- Hextatic

- Lionrock

- Junkie XL (the old stuff)

- The Herbaliser

- The Future Sound Of London

thanks in advance,

Eis-T

I must concur that 4x4 beats should be used more sparingly imo. With that said, I'll be happy with the next chems album if there is at least one song as big-beaty as Saturate or Come Inside. :)

I do miss Big Beat.

What is this album by Hyper? I must check it out, seeing as it was used in the same sentence as "Invaders Must Die" to which I loved listening many many times!

i agree with csar, they have some kind of backflash on every album (WATN=ARR, S).

the last real chems bigbeat track was, of course, marvo ging.

we are the night: that album was the first adult version of a chemical brothers album for me -> from boys to adults (just think of TPWHYN or battle scars)

i also was a fan of big beat. but for me, big beat (real big beat) was sooo 90's. so i don't expect "old skool big beat" from the chems nowadays. T&E are too fast forward to bring us back "DYOH big beat" (even big beat in a new way; "nu beat"?!?! for example)

what i expect for chem7: a mostly 4x4 technoid album (also hope for some rough breaks), even more mature, but not that "nuravy touch" that WATN had. that means, instead of the features more electronica stuff on a very high level (experimental?! but with that - yeah that's a chemical brothers track - touch)

the danceable tracks on chem7 i think will be likes of boysnoize roughness and the others, something to fly outta space, in the bjork region.

equals: break beat for me mostly is nostalgic music, don't fit in the 10-er years also not on a new chems album.

RIP BIG BEAT 1995 - 2001

personally i don't care if it's dated or oldschool. i like the "everything is possible" spirit of bigbeat. especially the tracks of bentley rythm ace and fatboy slim were insane. i remember a track by overseer with a phone ringing in it for about 10 minutes :P no other genre could handle that! :) (okay, exept ambient...)

a bit like bigbeat is C-mon & kypski. only known here in holland, but they have a big beat like sound and attitude.

c-mon and kypski: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=qMACOpqx_eM

when searching to bigbeat i found this 80's thing about big beat: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=TcQYgrm6Vv0

Big Beat needs a comeback. It was an addicting quality and it was easily distinguishable from other genres (it was also a time where I wish my headset volume was higher than it was). I do want the old City of Angels label and the ol' Skint label back but I don't think it will happen unless new and upcoming artist try to take the helm and give a spin, but vets like Fatboy and the Chems won't go back to it because its been done already, and if they did go back to it, it would be like taking a step back.

@Eis-T

Hola! Welcome to the almost updated Brotherhood!

That's a jem of a record on Billy Squier. Sampled alot in hip-hop.

Big Beat or Breakbeat or whatever it is called is timeless in my opinion. So I don't care if it's 2010 or the 90s.

@Eis-T: Two I can think of instantly are the Low Fidelity Allstars and ILS. I highly recommend the latter one. He's got loads of good breaky tunes in his discog.

Here are good examples:

ILS with Baba O'reily remix: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=bn-c4Z1JicQ

Lo Fidelity A with Battleflag: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=ZuwWvPGul3o

thanks Csar and inchemwethrust, i will add these records to my wanted list.

i'm still wondering why i forgot about low fidelity allstars in that list.

There's also a band called Torpedo Boyz. Their album 'Headache Music' is packed with big beat stuff.

And there's a former band which was called SPOC. But I can't find any albums or tracks anywhere.

Have you discovered www.Bigbeat.ch yet?

It's an online radio and forum with focus on big beat and related stuff (but not only). There you could probably find the one and other treasure.

Hey guys, www.bigbeat.ch For old time sake! Dont have every bigbeat album in the world but its good to have beating away in the backround on your laptop

@ Eist

Ok hear we go,

Indian ropeman- elephant sound **** (asian beats)

Crystal method- vegas***** (US BIGBEAT)

Hardknox - Hardknox**** (prodigy like)

Headrillaz- Coldharbour rocks *** a poor DYOH)

Atomic hooligan- u are here **** (excellent)

Cut and paste- Come unstuck *** (loadsa breaks)

Cut la Roc- La Roc Rocks**** (skint stable)

Death in vegas- Scorpio rising, Dead elvis ****

Dub pistols - Point blank ***

Pepe Deluxe - Supersound****(one of my fav,cheesey

Manchild united states **** (Prodigy like)

Space Raiders - Dont be daft **** (B.R.A. like)

Monkey mafia - Shoot the boss*** (andy weatherall)

Mekon - Relax with Mekon **** (pure bigbeat)

Deejay punc roc - Spoiling it for everyone ***

Hyper Suicide tuesday ***** (punk paced beats)

All of Lemonjelly's stuff **** (lighthearted)

All of Bonobo's stuff (Chilled beats)

Ok thats just what i can think of but theres DONKEYS more!! Alot of these groups arnt making bigbeat anymore but all the albums listed are either pure bigbeat or breakbeat powered. Hope this helps!

would help if i read csars post first on bigbeat.ch!!

I still enjoy a lot of big beat artists and tracks in my weekly rotation. Although I think WATN is the Chems best album from start to finish and Surrender is genius, I don't know if anything compares to the energy and vibe of EPD & DYOH and the b-sides that accompanied them.

It would be great if the Chems mixed it up with a little less 4:4 beats on their next outing, but I share whirly's opinion about their evolution. I'd like to see them move forward, not backwards.

Don't get me wrong. If they feel like starting the second big beat revolution, who am I to argue???

Check this out:

http://www.youtube.c...h?v=WCbbNOS8Cyw

And this guy has a plenty of good 'ol big beaters on his channel: www.youtube.com/user/major0812

By the way, from time to time there actually are some big beatish tracks even in the charts - if you ignore lyrics and vocals. Julien Casablancas "11th dimension" is quite good (don't like the vocals though) or I Will Love You Monday by Aura Dione. Vocals there quite match the funkyness but without them it could make a good big beat tune.

Hmmmm, as much as I loved big beat at the time, I don't know if I'd want a resurgence. I stumbled across "Better living through chemistry" the other day on my iPod and the first thing i thought was "Man, this stuff hasnt aged well." In its heyday, big beat was stylish and different, dance music that it was ok for rockers to like and rock music dance heads could like - the crossover appeal was instant. But there was rarely any song structure, it was all about compressed drum loops and squealing synths, and in the end I fear, just big dumb noise at times :(

i partly agree about "better living through chemestry" but there are a few tracks that stil got it. give "first down" and "The Sound Of Milwaukee" another listen. i regard this album as the experimenting norman cook trying to define his sound. he had to make this to come to his best work: "you've come a long way, baby." to me most tracks on better living are just idea sketches which are worked out on you've come a long way

thanks for the link to the bigbeat community! i will take a look around :)

i really think bigbeat will return when everyone has had enough of dubstep, minimal and tiesto-trance stuff.. we have already had a revival of the 80's, acid returned with homework by daft punk. what other dead genre has yet to be revived? i think the nowadays popular electrorock of justice, vitalic, daft punk, boys noize will get a more poppy and mainstream separation. what do you get when you mix that psychedic, synth driven rock with pop? indeed, big beat!