Over the past twenty years, Bedrock Records has been instrumental in defining the sound of underground dance music, thanks to a massive back catalogue of music from some of the most creative and talented names in the scene. To commemorate its 20th anniversary, the label released a very special set featuring custom-made tunes and two mixes from the boss himself, John Digweed.
John Digweed and Nick Muir started Bedrock Records back in 1999 with the first single “Heaven Scent“, a classic tune by now and one that signalled the musical direction the label would take from then on, highly creative and skilfully crafted tracks that took their inspiration equally from progressive house and trance, techno and breakbeats. Artists like Danny Howells, Jimmy Van M and Chris Fortier were first supported by Bedrock, and other top producers such as Guy J, Secret Rescue, Pig & Dan, Marco Bailey, Quivver, Christian Smith and a very long etc. have had at least one release on the label.
With such an exceptional catalogue, it was normal to expect something very special from Bedrock for their 20th anniversary, and they surely delivered with a compilation packed with new tunes, custom made by the producers for this special collection, which are then mixed in two sets by label top man John Digweed. With brand-spanking-new tracks from Digweed and Muir, Guy J, Josh Winx, Marc Romboy, Martin Eyerer, Alan Fitzpatrick, Oliver Lieb, Paco Osuna, among many others, Bedrock XX represents a celebration of quality and craftsmanship that, over 20 years, has evolved and adapted to new sounds and attitudes, keeping the label current and in the cutting edge of electronic music.
The mixed sessions show Digweed at his finest when it comes to selecting music and placing each tune in its proper place, with the first set leaning more towards melodic techno, while the second one allows things to get a little harder and looser. The mixes perfectly showcase the strengths of the Bedrock style, melody vs. beat, and are among the best I’ve heard from Digweed, due in great part to the brilliant music they’re comprised of, but also to the flawless mixing that put them together. At a combined running time of almost two hours, they are the perfect way to enjoy the collection and to feel like part of the label’s twenty-years anniversary celebration.
Bedrock XX is available as both a 4xCD or 5xLP deluxe set that, as we previewed, includes the unmixed, full-length versions of the tracks as well as both Digweed mixes, and also goodies like slipmats, keyrings, T-shirts and other Bedrock memorabilia. Details and prices can be found in Bedrock’s merchandising page.
To sample the collection, here are two mini-mixes from Bedrock’s official Soundcloud page:
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