Trevor Jackson Photo: Supplied
Jim Pinckney delves into a curated selection of classics, rarities and unreleased tracks from the On-U Sound vaults by DJ and Audio Visual artist Trevor Jackson.
Trevor Jackson is a legendary figure in the UK underground, a man of many hats who has found acclaim as a designer, producer, label owner and DJ, over the course of a long and influential career. Following the success of his Metal Dance compilation which corralled together a set of under appreciated 80s industrial dance 12” mixes, he has turned his attention to the earlier esoteric end of On-U Sound - the British label founded by producer Adrian Sherwood, that has been operating on the fringes, more or less continuously, for 35 years. Upholding their credo of ‘disturbing the comfortable and comforting the disturbed’ On-U Sound’s 80’s agit-dub and power funk reflected the paranoia and brutality of Britain at that time, and the potent creativity that sprung up in response to that climate. With Tackhead, Dub Syndicate and African Head Charge amongst a line up that also stretches to Neneh Cherry and Shara Nelson this, at times brutal, collection reminds how just far ahead of their time they really were.
Songs played: Chemical Specialist, Off The Beaten Track, Dead Come Alive, Dee Jay’s Program, Kunta Kinte Dub, Aiming At Your Heart Pt. 2, Ace Of Wands
