Slam’s ‘Positive Education’ and dance music 1993 - 1994

Slam’s ‘Positive Education’ and dance music 1993 - 1994

3 June, 2009 | 7.15AM

• Written by: Terry Church
• Filed under: Music News: 20 years of dance music, slam, soma

Slam smashed their way into the international club scene in 1993 with the stabbing notes of ‘Positive Education’, that minced Chicago house, Detroit techno, and European grooves into a veritable musical haggis. Driven by a frenzied choir of acidic synthesizers, bubbling basslines, and rolling snare drums, the track injected adrenaline into the veins of Chicago and Detroit and inspired a generation of house and techno producers.

Scottish pair Stuart McMillan and Orde Meikle created the timeless masterpiece in their studio in Glasgow and it changed their lives, and possibly dance music, forever.

“It’s definitely one of those ‘what if’ moments,” says Stuart. “Like what if we never did this? Or what if we never did that? It’s hard to think of our career without that record because it was the catalyst that enabled us to start traveling to other cities and doing remixes for other artists.

“It was also the record where the distributors started taking Soma more seriously as a label. Also, two young kids from Paris, who called themselves Daft Punk, got in touch with us because of that track.” (Soma released Daft Punk’s debut EP ‘The New Wave’ in 1994. That release got Bangalter and de Homem-Christo signed to Virgin Records. The rest is French house history.)

‘Positive Education’ came together in just a few hours, but it took days to perfect. “When we made it we were busting with ideas,” says Orde, who together with Stuart scrutinised every nano second, and every micro frequency of the track.

“Within two hours we had all the components bar a few that made it onto the final version. We then spent a whole lot more time producing it and perfecting it to the point where it could have become painful, but it never did. I remember at the last minute we replaced a string part and if we had kept the old part in it just wouldn’t have been been the same record.”

Stuart and Orde were influenced by everything back in 1993 because dance music had already exploded. The foundations for house and techno had been laid. The soundclash and uniqueness on ‘Positive Education’ is a result of the different musical ideas flowing out of the US and Europe being reinterpreted in their studio in Scotland.

It was a bastard child, with many fathers

As Orde explains, “‘Positive Education’ was influenced by what we were playing at the time as DJs, from jacking Djax records and Chicago stuff, to nu groove, soulful Detroit Techno, Strictly Rhythm records, Todd Terry, and Red Zone Dubs.

“Whether it was a shaker or a ride, or whatever, I like to think they all managed to find there place in that track somewhere. And when it was finished it didn’t sound like any of these things, it was a bastard child with many fathers.”

Studio technique

Like many of the anthems from the early days, ‘Positive Education’ was created using solely analogue equipment. Slam’s studio was brimming with expensive gear at the time as, “equipment was really expensive in the 1990s. You had to be serious about making music if you wanted to buy lots of equipment,” says Stuart.

In their studio they had an Ensoniq EPS sampler and sequencer (right), a Jupiter 8, a Roland TR 909, Roland R8, Juno 106, Yamaha DX100, Tascam Real 2 Real 8 track recorder, Roland Jx3p, Roland Jx8p, Roland Jd 800, Roland SH 101, Roland 727, Roland 808, and a mixing desk with some effects.

“When we were making ‘Positive’ the Ensoniq EPS crashed all the time which was a bit frustrating. We had to send programmed changes to the Jupiter 6 so the bass would play in time.

“When we went in the studio the J6 would sound different to how we had left it and we would have to wait a while till the keyboard warmed up. Most of the drum sounds were from the R8. The stings were from the Yamaha DX100, an old FM synth. They were added at the very last minute.”

The energy of ‘Positive Education’ enthralled DJs the globe over. Andrew Weatherall in the UK jumped on it. Kenny Larkin and Richie Hawtin rocked Detroit with it. Laurent Garnier enticed clubbers in Paris with it. ‘Positive Education’ spread like the enlightenment.

Remembering the very first time that they played it out in public, Stuart says, “We managed to get an acetate air mailed over from the UK as we went to the US to do a few shows before it was ready. It arrived just as we were about to leave LA for San Francisco. We played it at an after hours there called Boogie Buffet which started at eight in the morning. A few friends came from LA, and when we dropped it about 11 for the first time the whole place went absolutely wild. Loads of people came up to the decks to ask ‘what the fuck is this tune?’ The record had a real cross section of fans, from die hard house fans to techno purists.”

The original of ‘Positive Education’ is still being played in clubs today, which is testament to Slam’s meticulousness all those years ago. “I think because we procrastinated on the final production side it paid dividends. It still stands up against the over compressed digital masters of today,” says Orde.

The track’s lasting message resonates through techno’s Hall of Fame, like an inspiring lecture. It screams, pay attention to the details.

Tracks that defined 1993 - 1994

Slam help review some of the records that defined dance music 1993 - 1994.

Plastikman ‘Spastik’ (Plus 8 Records) (1993)

“What can you say about this record? It has a real unique quality this was massive for us from the first time we played it. It still is.”

Robert Armani ‘Circus Bells’ (Hardfloor Remix) (Djax Up Beats) (1993)

“We were a huge fans of the original of this. This is a serious jacking version and it was released not long after Hardfloor’s ‘Acperience 1’ which was massive as well.”

DBX ‘Losing Control’ (Accelerate) (1994)

“This is the ultimate minimal record and is what good groovy tracky techno sounded like before it went all 140 bpm loopy mayhem. We love Daniel Bell productions. “

Basic Channel ‘Phylyps Trak II/II’ (Basic Channel) (1993)

“We love both sides and they would feature at our Slam nights in the Arches in Glasgow back then and Basic Channel still feature in our sets that build from that sound at the beginning of the night at clubs like Fabric and our Return To Mono night at the Sub in Glasgow.”

Hardrive ‘Deep Inside’ (Strictly Rhythm) (1993)

Lil Louis Vega’s house classic ‘Deep Inside’ is one of Strictly Rhythm’s greatest hits, and to this day can still be heard rocking house clubs.

With its two instantly recognisable vocal loops (’deep inside, deep deep down inside’, and ‘uh oh’) that never seem to tire, and its jumbling bumping bassline, the track jumped out of club speakers across America and Europe in 1993.

It’s one of the catchiest house tracks of all time.

Deep Blue ‘The Helicopter Song’ (Moving Shadow) (1993)

Sean O’Keefe was part of British breakbeat pioneering act 2 Bad Mice, and his solo 12” on Moving Shadow is one of the label’s most successful ever releases.

Produced before drum & bass had fully formed, ‘Helicopter Tune’ was one of the first tracks to utilise what has become some of jungle’s most recognisable traits including rolling bass that you could feel in your stomach and rainforest sounds that came from rave acts like 808 State. Jungle meant something very different, back then.

Pete Lazonby ‘Sacred Cycles’ (Original) (Hooj Choons) (1994)

Pete Lazonby’s classic ‘Sacred Cycles’ helped define the ethereal, understated melancholic branch of trance otherwise known as progressive house.

With a musical background that began in progressive rock, Lazonby utilised the drawn out hypnotism and layering of the genre, and combined it with beautiful trance-like melodies to create a sonically evolving masterpiece.

Based on a sample from Genesis’ prog rock classic ‘Watcher of the Skies’, the 11 minute track was, at the time, considered bold in its vision, not least because of its five minute intro.

Beginning with samples of Manhatma Ghandi, the track journeys through layers of sound and is propelled by waves of euphoria and synthesized lead lines. Never quite reaching a climax, Lazonby stayed true to the track’s title by ending it where it all began, with quiet bliss and Ghandi’s muttered echoes.

Emanuel Top ‘Turkish Bazar’ (Kosmo) (1994)

“The music was new, black, polished chrome and came over the summer like liquid night,” says a monotoned voice on Emanuel Top’s classic French techno track ‘Turkish Bazar’. Jim Morrison from The Doors was the original author behind that line - it appeared on the poem ‘Black Polished Chrome’ from The Doors’ ‘An American Prayer’ album.

Based around a looping Roland TB-303 acid line and slamming 909 drum loops, Emanuel Top became one of France’s first techno superstars off the back of ‘Turkish Bazar’.

Interestingly, Emanuel Top later joined Bruno Sanchioni and Bruno Quartier to form the late 1990s chart topping trance act BBE.

Humate ‘Love Stimulation’ (Paul van Dyk Remix) (Grand Casino) (1993)

Paul van Dyk’s heart-wrenching, emotionally exhausting remix of Humate’s ‘Love Stimulation’ is an all-time trance classic that helped pave the way for a thousand tearful, hands-in-the-air moments.

There are few trance tracks, if any, that have been produced since, that offer as much dancefloor contemplation, sadness, and cinematic wonder as his Love Club Mix.

It’s difficult to talk about the beauty of trance today, as its rightful superlatives have now become cliché. Yet before the word was dirty, trance stirred inner feelings and its edifying beauty was as pure as love itself (some might said). Paul van Dyk’s remix still captivates the heart now, as it did, back then.

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