Helium – The Works EP

Long out of press, Helium’s seminal 1993 masterpiece ’The Works’ E.P. eventually sees the light of day again on Kalahari Oyster Cult. A head-turning slab of visionary house and trance music, ’The Works’ hasn’t aged one bit and its dancefloor appeal sure hasn’t lost any of its high-impact melodic beauty. Driven by the subs-towed harmonics of the wistful ‘Out There’ and fun-loving cowbell rides meet gut-churning 909 kicks of ’Try Me’. An off-kilter ambientoid trip, B-side opener ‘Clouds’ draws closer to The KLF’s chromatic blends, whereas ‘We Are The Future’ expands the scope to further utopian apexes with its soothing assortment of nu-agey panpipes and slo, Sino-flavoured chug. Rounding off that mini-odyssey, breaky pastoral closer ‘What Is The Human Machine’ takes us on a trip-hop-informed, acid-friendly ride in the wild.