Now I very very rarely review music on my blog, but i've been meaning to write a piece on this track for a long while, mainly becuase it seems to be the least favourite track off of Midlands brilliant EP on More Music, Bring Joy.
The original track is a lovely hard hitting yet strangely deep piece of housey garage, the real gem being the cleverly sampled female vocals which create a stunning breakdown.
However on the reverse, Radio Slave delivers a rework which he calls the 'Joy & Pain Remix', incorporating his standard dark, grungey techno into a truely haunting piece of music. Playing at just over 12 minutes long, Radio Slave pounds the original into a solid, flat, brooding piece. Occasional hi-hats rattle over the track as the vocals begin to fade in; completely unrecognizable from Midland's original, Radio Slave has twisted and distorted them into a ghoulish wail. Frequintly overlapping, the vocals almost speak to each other as they howl and cry while the droning beat pounds on. Despite this seeming like the track is a wailing, confsuing mess; its strangly minimal, and particularly haunting as the vocals fade in and out. By no means an uplifting tune, the Joy & Pain Remix desivers alot more credit than critics seem to give.
