An unusual but inspired choice for the usually prog-focused Global Underground series, Felix Da Housecat is the proverbial cat amongst the pigeons in terms of upsetting the geeky GU community. Good show all concerned! Newcomers to Felix Stallings Jnr. will probably only know him for his electroclash and post-electroclash kitsch stylings (Silver Screen Shower Scene etc.), but on this compilation he’s decided to go back to his techno routes for one disc, and his “better known” sound on the other.
The F*ck Rock disk starts with a little old school house, before segueing into the delightfully funky acid filth of Josh Wink’s sexed-up Thick As Thieves. A smattering of dull cold, techno follows, before things get interesting again around the halfway mark. Benny Benassi’s Love And Emotion brings the focus back to strong melody, before Daft Punker Thomas Bangalterserves up the menacing, spooky Outrage – perfectly bridging the gap between Felix’s past and present. He slams in his own hard-stomping classic Tweak! somewhat awkwardly, before we delve into territories more stripped-back and minimal with Pig & Dan, Dubfire and Dettman & Klock’s bouncing remix of Par Gridnvik’s Continue In My Words. Chymera’s stunning, delicate, frosty Arabesque brings us to a surprising, beautiful, but somewhat random finish.
Disc 2 (F*ck Rave) is more about kitsch electro pop and sordid electro, and wonderfully tacky ‘80s stylings, kicking off with Sally Shapiro’s gentle crooning on Hold Me So Tight, moving into quirky electro-disco on Quango Quango’s Love Tempo, and then euphoric, twinkling synths of Lopazz’s fantastic 2 Fast 4 U. Jo Jo De Freq’s rugged-bassed Saturn Returns is a heady, atmospheric cut, leading towards a tough midsection John Dahlbäck’s Blink still sounds great after all this time – a fuzzy, scuzzy, chugging melange of Clangers style noises and a sharp, wasp like bassline – segueing perfectly into the funky acid stomp of Etienne De Crecy’s Punk.
Things then get really nasty with the vicious jacking electro of Charlie Fanclub’s Nightbreed, coming on like Kavinsky after one too many crack pipes, before Felix quickly switches into David Carretta’s Vicious Game, a nod to his electroclash zeitgeist past. Then after this banging, contemporary(ish) selection, it all goes crazy again, with some classic electro/techno from the ‘80s from Model 500, and eccentric jazz house on Endangered Species’ Ping Pong, before a big euphoric, synth laden-finish brings things to an end (with Shinichi Osawa’s gloriously uplifting rework of Felix’s Radio a compilation highlight)
In all truth, Disc 1 tires in places unfortunately, but Disc 2 is worth the entry free alone. He’s still one of the most interesting people in dance music – and clearly not slouching on the DJ front one bit. Well, aside from the boring techno interlude...