Jason BakerFootfalls (Single Mix)
Footfalls (Epsilon Minus Mix)
The Sad Truth (Demo Version)
Footfalls (Stochastic Theory Mix)
Easier (Live)
Walk In London (Ensku's Underground Travelcard Mix)
This single was released in mid-to-late 2003, to bridge the gap between the debut album “Sublimation” and the just-about-to-be released “A Million Different Moments”. It was made available as a downloadable single from the band's site, as well as a purchasable cd single through ampcast.com or cafepress.com.
The EP features three alternate mixes of the title track, as produced by Null Device, Stochastic Theory and Epsilon Minus, as well as the demo of “The Sad Truth”, and two tracks from the upcoming second album. However, those two tracks are presented as a Live track and a remix, so listeners are left wondering how much different these tracks will be in album form. Personally I'm not all that crazy about live tracks as a general rule, but the recording quality is surprisingly good. Not perfect at all, but a lot better than I expected. The remix of “Walk In London” seems to hide a good song with a lot of extraneous padding in the mix. If this were edited down to about a 4-5 minute remix, I would have really enjoyed it a lot more. As It is, it gets old quickly.
The demo version of “The Sad Truth” is very interesting to hear, as even in this very raw form, the strength and memorablility of the song are very present. I still think the remix on the State Of Synthpop 2003 is my favorite version of the song, though. I must admit to being a little surprised on hearing the Epsilon Minus remix of the title track. After hearing “Mark II”, I was expecting to hear a slamming percussion laden-remix, but this is actually a mid-tempo mix. Stochastic Theory's remix is actually the hardest-hitting of the two mixes, with a hard guitar backing added into parts of the song. Still, both remixes took a more relaxed approach to the track than I expected.
All in all, this is a interesting bridge between “Sublimation” and “A Million Different Moments”. While none of the tracks here are what I could call essential, they're still interesting. If nothing else, you can go to http://footfalls.nulldevice.com and download a few of these songs.
Rating: ***