Following XL Recordings honcho Richard Russell’s remix of ‘Bomb’ a few weeks back, Crass Records have announced the second release in their Feeding Of The Five Thousand remix project.
This time, New York DJ, producer and promoter Johnny Dynell, well known for his 1983 cult hit ‘Jam Hot’ (remixed and sampled many times over, most famously by Fatboy Slim and his group Beats International for ‘Dub Be Good To Me') has taken on 'G's Song', written by Gee Vaucher, the band's visual artist.
With roots in the 70s No Wave scene, Dynell’s connection and friendship with Crass goes back to the anarchist punk icons' only US gigs in 1978 in NYC.
“I met Gee in 1977 when she came to live in NYC and we shared a loft space with another friend,” remembers Dynell. “I met CRASS in 1978 when they came to play and we became very close. Gee had her own place by then which is where the band stayed. After practically living with them all while they were in town, I quickly became aware of how bad things were in England and that bands like CRASS were really trying to make a difference. The difference between the New York Punk scene and the English scene at the time was striking. New York was nowhere near as political or as intense. CRASS were definitely not just interested in getting a record contract. Gee was and continues to be a role model and a positive influence on me.”
Speaking about the track, Dynell continues, “This track was a real challenge though because I wanted to do something totally different with it. I wanted it to sound more like the tracks that I DJ in clubs, but still have the power and drive of the punk original. I used Steve's iconic vocals and a few bars of the punk guitar in the intro to show the song's roots. The drums change at the end of the song to a more driving punk beat. I hoped that this would bring back some of the original live energy of the band I'd experienced.”
Check out the video for 'G's Song'
The 12” also includes a jarring, cut-up experimental remix of ‘Banned From The Roxy’ by by electronic composer and video artist Charles Webber who, has for many years collaborated closely with Crass vocalist Eve Libertine on such works as the chamber opera ‘Room of Worlds’, an arrangement of Wilhelm Reich’s ‘Listen Little Man’ and the Kernschmelze series devised by Crass founder Penny Rimbaud.
As previously reported, late last year Crass made the original separate track stems of their seminal album The Feeding of the Five Thousand available as free downloads with the intention that anyone interested could come up with new remixes of the tracks.
The 12" Normal Never Was 2 will be released in a limited blue vinyl edition on 4 September by Crass Records via One Little Independent. All proceeds will be donated to the domestic violence charity Refuge.
Pre-order it here.
Pic by Tony Mottram