Bomb The Bass - Beat Dis (12" Extended Dis)
- 12 INCH VINYL
- Apr 6
- 3 min read
Updated: May 20
Wag Club DJ Tim Simenon and Rhythm King Records co-founder James Horrocks were London flatmates in 1987.
Horrocks, along with Martin Heath, Adele Nozedar and DJ Jay Strongman, had set up Rhythm King Records a year earlier as an offshoot of Daniel Miller's Mute Records, focusing on emerging genres such as house, acid house, acid jazz, sampling culture, and hip hop/rap.
By 1987, they had released what is considered the first known hip-house record — Rok Da House by The Beatmasters featuring The Cookie Crew — which combined elements of house and hip hop.
Simenon had become interested in the creative possibilities arising from the arrival of Akai samplers on the music production market in 1986.
The Akai range, beginning with the S900, democratised sampling by enabling independent and semi-pro artists to experiment. Previously, sampling was restricted to high-end professional studio equipment such as the Fairlight CMI or the E-mu Emulator II, and per hour rates for studios with such equipment were prohibitive for most.
At around £2,000, the Akai S900 cost roughly 10% of a Fairlight CMI (it was around 10% of the size too!).
Within a few years, the new Akai samplers had changed the sound of mainstream radio and chart music, with early adopters including Public Enemy, Coldcut, and S'Express.
Simenon was ready to try to push the new machine to its full potential. Horrocks was keen to assist and offered free studio time with Rhythm King producer Pascal Gabriel. Simenon said his plan was to “bombard the bassline” with samples — a concept that led him to the name Bomb the Bass.
The resulting track, Beat Dis, featured samples from at least 25 different sources, ranging from records by Afrika Bambaataa, The Bar-Kays, James Brown, and Curtis Blow to spoken-word excerpts from TV shows Dragnet, Thunderbirds, and Car 54, Where Are You?
The release strategy for Beat Dis was also innovative.
Simenon formed his own label, Mister-Ron Records, and had the record pressed in the US and imported into the UK with limited information about its creators. The aim was to make the record seem like a mysterious underground track from abroad — something ultra-hip London DJs would perceive as cool and unusual.
The track quickly became a club favourite and was then picked up and properly distributed by Rhythm King Records.
Beat Dis was released in February 1988 and spent five weeks in the UK Top 10, including two weeks at number two, held off the top spot by Kylie Minogue’s debut mega-hit, I Should Be So Lucky.
By chance, Beat Dis would influence dance music culture beyond the sound of the record itself.
The sleeve featured the band name and title in a red graffiti typeface alongside a circular yellow smiley face, adapted from the comic book series Watchmen.
Soon after, DJ Danny Rampling and his wife Jenni began using the yellow smiley face in promotional materials for their London club night Shoom. From that point, the symbol grew to become the de facto logo of the acid house movement.
Simenon went on to have further hits with Bomb the Bass but was generally happier working in the studio than being in the public eye.
He continued releasing tracks as Bomb the Bass for 20 years, scoring three more Top 10 singles and two Top 20 albums.
Among his first production credits was developing Buffalo Stance for Neneh Cherry, alongside Mute Records producer Mark Saunders. As a remixer, he became highly in demand in the 1990s, working with Björk, David Bowie, and others.
He also produced high-profile records for artists including Seal, Sinéad O'Connor, and Depeche Mode.
Simenon has since left the music industry and relocated to Prague, where he founded a meatball shop with a friend.
“There have been a few Depeche Mode fans coming in here, asking me to sign copies of Ultra,” he says. “In between making a menu I’ll grab a pen and sign an album. It’s unusual. It’s hard to describe. But it’s at the same time really sort of touching.”
Year: 1988 Label: Mister-Ron Records Cat no: DOOD 121
Kommentare