The Vitals:

Label: Fat! Records
Genre: Breaks
Number of Tracks: 3 (original and 2 remixes)
How to Obtain: www.beatport.com, www.djdownload.com

Factor Scores:

Production Quality: 7.0
Programming and Arrangement: 7.8
Entertainment Quality: 7.2
Total: 7.3 - Good

Z's Take:

Old EDM tracks have a sound of their own. I don't know if it is due to early technology or because the artists were still finding their way around the genre, but there is a distinct sound and feel that many of those songs have. It is a hard-to-describe yet unmistakable element in those late 80s and early 90s electronic songs. 808 State has it. Orb has it. Prodigy has it. And this group, Unique 3, has it.

From the simple repetitive bassline to the reggae-tinged vocals and electro elements, the original track is exactly what I would expect of a 1990 rave track. But now, 17 years later, the old track gets some new chrome and contours as it gets worked on by two current breaks artists.

Production Quality

After listening to the remixes numerous times, I still can't quite give a precise rating in this category. Each has a finely crafted sound and is built tightly around the feel of the original, but when I compare it to a current breaks track, they seem to lack something. I can't pick out any glaring mistakes in the production, but they still feel less than perfect.

Programming and Arrangement

With the original track being quite minimal, Merka and Rogue Element didn't have a lot to work with, but both came forward with creative compositions. The Merka track shows the fun upbeat side that I have come to know them for. Their version is a fast-paced bright-sounding track that adds nearly perfect pads into the mix and warps the original bassline enough to give it new energy. Merka adds a glossy sheen to the track and presents us with a great summer jumper. On the other hand, Rogue Element heats things up with a progressive floor stomper. With a stronger, more rough-edged feel than the Merka version, Rogue Element keeps the original bassline more intact and drives the track with a thumping 4-kick beat. The mix keeps things fiery with some great acid noise and a scratchy "break it down" vox.

Entertainment Quality

Even with the talented artists rewriting the history of this track, the original doesn't have enough elements to allow for a really fabulous remix. The remixes are well produced and fun to listen to initially, but they are quite repetitious and fall back on the short-phrased bassline to hold them together. I found the lack of a good melody wore me down and made the tracks a bit tedious after a few listens. This, of course, is no fault of Merka and Rogue Element but boils down to the minimalistic experiments of Unique 3. These tracks are bound to make you turn up the volume and bob your head, but they probably won't last more than a few rounds in your player.

Summary

Both of these remixes are a testament to the growth and evolution of the EDM genre over the last 17 years. The original is nestled comfortably in the early 90s, but the artists remixing "The Theme" are definitely plowing new ground even with older not-so-unique sounds. Ultimately these tracks might be popping up in a few breakbeat sets, but I don't foresee them making a huge splash in the scene.