CABARET VOLTAIRE ORIGINAL SOUND OF SHEFFIELD '83/'87. BEST OF; ALBUM VIRGIN RELEASE: DECEMBER, 2001 REVIEW: JANUARY 23, 2002

To say that British Cabaret Voltaire has influenced a lot of the leading hard electronic bands is not an understatement. Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly and Front 242 are just a few of those claiming to have listened a lot to Cabaret Voltaire when they grew up.
When listening to this best-of album, it is also clear these bands have borrowed a lot from them. Just a quick glance, tells me Skinny Puppy must have listened to "Crackdown" when they made "Testure", and you can recognise a lot of Front 242 in for example "I Want You".
This album is a compilation of tracks from 1983 to 1987, and gives an excellent first look into the band. The songs gradually get funkier compared to the rather monotone and electronic early tracks, through the slap bass and horn sections on "James Brown", to female backing vocals and a distinctly funky approach in "Don't Argue (Robie Extended Version)".
Later albums with the band also show an even dancier style, and it's interesting to follow the progression. Another thing to note is the well-known people involved. Both Flood and Adrian Sherwood have produced albums, and Francois Kevorkian has remixed some of the tracks.
Of course all this sounds a bit dated now, but as a historical document, this CD is a masterpiece. If you are interested in the roots of electronic body music, this is a part of it. There are some other compilations with the Sheffield legends out there. This album mostly contains remixed versions, so if you want the originals, maybe you should get "The Living Legends" on Mute Records. There is also a three CD box called "Conform to Deform '82/'90. Archive;" which contains even more remixes, and live material.

JOHAN CARLSSON