Veröffentlicht
Aug 8, 2021
- Kirk Degiorgio highlights K-Alexi Shelby's dark, erotic cut from the early days of Chicago house.
- Late at night I'm drawn to you
Like a moth drawn to a flame,
Oh girl, I can't resist your love,
Runs deep inside my veins.
A thumping beat, whispered vocal, groan and heavy breathing provide the intro to "Essence Of A Dream" by Risqué III, released in 1987 on Stride Records Inc. It took a skilled DJ to set up the mood and space required to drop this at a rave at the time. It's not particularly euphoric, uplifting, or joyous. Instead, it's dark, mysterious, a bit twisted and absolutely stunning. This was the dark side of Chicago house, representing the seedier side of one of America's biggest cities, where the climate is famously brutal: bone-chilling and icy in the winter and a concrete-and-glass furnace in summer.
Before the UK rave scene exploded in the second summers of love (1988 and '89), house music made its mark thanks to iconic tracks like "Essence Of A Dream," crafted in the genre's birthplace of Chicago. This period, which actually started around 1986, saw the biggest house artists (think Farley "Jackmaster" Funk, Marshall Jefferson and J.M. Silk) sharing space on the UK charts with the likes of Prince, Cameo and Janet Jackson.
Initially heard in clubs in the Midlands and the north of the UK—and dropped in amongst soul and funk at clubs in the South East and London—house music crossed the pond at a time when the UK was also enjoying a rare groove-inspired boom in what's now known as "golden age" hip-hop, as electro-based rap gave way to sample-based hip-hop. House had a hard time competing. At the tail-end of 1987, however, there was a definitive shift back towards house music (and also the early Detroit techno sound). Much has been written about this period, which ushered in the acid house scene and rave culture in the UK. I was fortunate enough to witness it first hand.
My first encounter with house music was at a well-known soul club in Dartford named Flicks in 1986, when "Love Can't Turn Around" was in heavy rotation. I didn't hear this kind of music mixed together for hours until an all-dayer at Nottingham's Rock City venue circa April 1987. Ironically, this was billed as a hip-hop event—Def Jam Soul Attack—and I was there to see T La Rock of "It's Yours" fame. T La Rock was great as expected, but after the live performances the DJ played almost exclusively house music, because it was what the crowd wanted to hear.
I moved to London that year and was a regular at clubs such as The Wag in Soho, Dingwalls, and a local Sunday night event in Richmond-upon-Thames in a pub called the Belvedere Arms, hosted by a young Gilles Peterson. I was studying less than a mile away, so every Sunday a couple of us would make the short trip. The Belvedere was basically an after-party for the Dingwalls Sunday all-day events, focusing on rare groove, hip-hop, jazz and Latin music. In December 1987, a distinctly unique looking group came into the crowded pub. They all wore baggy jumpers and kicker boots, more akin to football terrace gear at the time than the M1 jacket and Levi's look common in the London club scene. Gilles Peterson pulled out an import 12-inch of Phuture's "Acid Tracks" and the whole place went mental.
I was handed a flyer to a club called Shoom by a young woman (Jenni Rampling) and soon found out the distinguished-looking group of visitors included Kiss FM DJ Danny Rampling. A few weeks later I was at the Kiss FM 1987 Christmas party at The Wag club. Rampling took over the decks and played a Balearic set that cleared the dance floor. The soul fans in attendance weren't quite ready for the Balearic sounds of The Woodentops, It's Immaterial or Mandy Smith. Many great acid house tracks were played at Shoom of course, but it seemed like Rampling was making a particular point with his set that night.
After that experience I was spoiled by the number of events in London caught up in the rising tide of acid house in 1988. The parties were so popular that, by the summer, the open-air raves were attended by tens of thousands of people. DJs like Colin Dale and Colin Faver pumped out acid house on pirate station Kiss FM, making many of us search hard for these Chicago imports we heard.
Many of these tracks were difficult to find, even for somebody (like myself) who worked part-time at London's best used-record store. Early UK acid house fans were reliant on compilations on labels such as Jack Trax that licensed and collected together many of the Chicago and Detroit imports. Jack Trax 2, which came out in late 1987, was particularly sought-after for the massive house anthem "Let The Music (Use You)" by The Night Writers. The popularity of this uplifting classic boosted sales of the compilation, providing a gateway to another track with a completely different mood.
"Essence Of A Dream" channels the colder, darker part of this scene. A simple rising and falling bassline over Roland 909, 707 and 727 percussion underpins a haunting string motif that evokes night time in the city. The sensuous quality only adds to its edginess, as everything is perfectly pared down to essential elements. What "Essence Of A Dream" might lack in complexity it gains in atmosphere. Nothing is superfluous, and only an artist with a natural feel for music could achieve this kind of minimalist perfection.
That artist is K-Alexi Shelby. Under the name Risqué III, Shelby, assisted by a number of co-writers and producers, had two releases under his belt before "Essence Of A Dream": a choppy, sample-based house EP called Don't You Know / Tropic Zone in 1987 and a popular and sought-after 1986 EP on the Chicago Connection label under the name Risque Rythum Team, which seems to have been more of a collaborative affair with acid house legend Mr. Lee.
I spoke with Sheby about the music that inspired that time in his life, which included Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield and, unsurprisingly, Prince. A Purple One-like eroticism is present on several of Shelby's later releases. A regular at Chicago's Warehouse from a very early age, Alexi told me about his life at that time: "Life was and is wonderful, taking nothing for granted," he said. "'Essence' opened so many doors. Like everyone else, I was a fan of Prince plus Italo disco, as it was such a full, rich sound. I was introduced at a very young age to the club world."
Mr. Lee is also credited as one of the track's mixers, so I asked Shelby about his involvement. "Lee is my family, like a brother," he said. "He got me into it with us calling the group Risque Rythum Team and then pushing me to go off on my own. I'm so happy he helped me find and be the real me."
This point about going off on his own journey is key to the music of K-Alexi Shelby. He has never stopped producing music, one of those rare artists with a truly distinctive sound. The mysterious, erotic and sometimes eerie quality seeps out of Shelby-produced gems such as "Our Love Stops And Goes" and the heavyweight acid stomper "Sex O'Clock Rains," both from the 1989 K.A. Posse EP on Kevin Saunderson's Pheerce Citi label. It's pretty much a perfect EP, but somehow Shelby managed to top it with another 1989 EP, for Transmat, All For Lee-Sah. The peak of Shelby's dark sound might be "Stick Music," released on DJ International in 1990, a particularly unnerving slice of evil acid that is perhaps best experienced in a dark, crowded room, single strobe, smoke machine and some close, trusted friends.
"Essence Of A Dream," however, is an enduring classic. You can drop it in the middle of a set and it holds its own, even to this day. The crowd always gives a whoop of recognition as soon as the opening vocal refrain enters. I asked Shelby what he thinks of his anthem nowadays. He replies with a competitive tone typical in the Windy City. Underneath the bravado is an artist proud of forging his own path and sound. Mostly, Shelby is keeping it moving, aware of his influence but unwilling to merely lean on a legendary discography.
"I feel even more proud now, seeing others copying my style, knowing I gave birth to many, as I was the only one speaking like that. It gives me great joy as so much more is out and on the way."