Strut presents the first in a new series of compilations, Disconnect, asking some of the world’s leading DJs to explore the darker side of their collections for rarities, secret weapons and unheralded dancefloor winners. We kick off with one of the UK’s finest, Leo Zero aka Leo Elstob.
Elstob has remained an influential figure in contemporary clubland for over 15 years. As a DJ, his pedigree is considerable. Resident at Shrink2Fit during the ‘90s spinning Detroit techno, rare groove and drum & bass alongside 4 Hero, Harvey and more, he is perhaps best known as co-creator of legendary deep house night Soulsonic alongside Stuart Patterson and as a key member of the Faith collective alongside Patterson, Bill Brewster, Terry Farley and Dave Jarvis, “the last bastion of Acid House” as Pete Tong famously nominated it.
As a producer, Elstob has been involved in a series of unique and influential collaborations. In the mid ‘90s, he was a main player in Chicane, with Nick Bracegirdle, scoring the massive single “Offshore” and debut album “Far From The Maddening Crowds.” In 2004, he formed Dab Hands with Mark Wilkinson and Richard Searle, responsible for a string of dancefloor hits and remixes including re-works of N*E*R*D, XPress2 and Lou Reed & David Bowie’s “Satellite Of Love.” Elstob then teamed up with Mo Morris and Zeb Jameson to form psychedelic band A Mountain Of One, writing and producing their acclaimed first album “Collected Works” in 2007, now revered as a Balearic / Cosmic Rock classic.
As Leo Zero, Elstob has become one of the UK’s most in-demand remixers and DJs, re-working a string of A-list pop and rock artists on some startling and unique versions. Highlights include the dark Phil Spector-influenced soul of Paul Weller’s “No Tears To Cry,” an epic piano house take on Florence & The Machine’s “Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)” and the recent simmering slo-mo 4×4 arrangement of Bryan Ferry’s “Alphaville.”
His Disconnect mix for Strut is a masterclass in the subversive dancefloor sound for which he has become renowned, taking in Afro, disco, reggae, punk, the sound of Factory Records and pioneers like Can, Brian Eno and John Cale. Among the many highlights, Basement 5’s proto punk-reggae bomb “Silicon Chip” in a previously unreleased extended edit from the original tapes, the epic extended version of Propaganda’s “Frozen Faces” and Afro-punk throwdowns from Unknown Cases and Indambinigi.
Tracklist:
1. DESMOND & THE TUTUS – KISS YOU ON THE CHEEK
2. RITUAL – SORE LIP
3. KABBALA – ASHEWO ARA
4. THE PIRANHAS – VI GELA GELA
5. ESSENTIAL LOGIC – BRUTE FURY
6. BASEMENT 5 – SILICON CHIP (Extended Edit)
7. THE DREAD FLIMSTONE SOUND – GHETTO LIFE
8. WUNMI – MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE
9. CHRIS & COSEY – EXOTICA (1988 remix)
10. PROPAGANDA – FROZEN FACES (12” mix)
11. INDAMBINIGI – ZIMBA
12. THE UNKNOWN CASES – MASIMBA BELE
13. GEORGE G – HOT LOVERS
14. CAN – HALLELUWAH
15. RICHY B MELODIA – KEEP IT MOVING ON
16. BRIAN ENO & JOHN CALE – SPINNING AWAY
17. THE COUNTACH – MY OASIS
TRAKS – WILD SAFARI (digital only)
http://www.strut-records.com
http://www.leozero-disconnect.com/
http://www.myspace.com/leotrax
http://www.soundcloud.com/leo-zero