Night Moves: Transdance Vinyl 12"

A way to live out your life. San Fransisco's Dark Entries imprint delivers the definitive reissue of a tried and true UK cold-disco floor filler, rinsed by Larry Levan at the Paradise Garage, Tony Humphries at Club Zanzibar and Ron Hardy at The Music Box in Chicago. Let Derrick May tell it:

"There was a record called “Transdance” from a group called Night Moves. I’m sure to this day it was David Bowie just fuckin’ around on a little bullshit, no-name label. It was like this 808 with a synth line, these chords and just this gaunt sounding haunting vocal. Around the time when the Italian stuff was happening big, it was considered one of those records, even though it was from England."

Here's the real story: in 1971, quiet south Londoner Michael Guihen put an ad in the paper to form a synth-based band and eventually teamed up with former Gary Numan keyboardist Denis Haines to form Night Moves. After passing around a white label copy of the original "GC1 Mix" of "Transdance", Guihen traveled to New York to commission a new mix from Jay Burnett, inspired by the budding NYC hip-hop and electro sound. Back in London, Guihen and Haines dubbed out the vocals and added a TR-808 for the final two "UK" mixes. The "New York Disco Mix" is the one for the club, but the softer, more introspective "GC1 Mix" is a deep trip on headphones, not to be slept on. Unlike other recent reissues, this version contains all four mixes of "Transdance" and has been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley with faithfully-reproduced original sleeve art by Shoot That Tiger!. Includes a stapled booklet containing original photos and the stories behind each mix, and an 11" square insert with lyrics on one side and drawings of all 36 victims of the 2016 Oakland Ghost Ship fire (100% of the label's profits will go toward the Oakland Fire Immediate Relief Fund) on the other. Recommended.

• remastered audio
• 2-sided 11” square insert with lyrics and drawings of all 36 victims of the Oakland Ghost Ship fire
• 6 page booklet containing liner notes, original press kit sheets & photographs from the band’s archive
• music label: Dark Entries 2017

reviewed by peanut dust 04/2017