Optimo’s JD Twitch on the first and last albums he bought, plus an all-time favourite
First
Various Artists
‘Action Replay’
(K-Tel, 1978)
“The first was a TV-advertised Top 40 compilation bought on tape called ‘Action Replay’ that kick-started my passion for music. It was 90 per cent junk, but it did introduce me to my first huge musical love – Blondie – turned me onto Devo, and contained the synth-tastic electronic disco delight that is ‘Supernature’ by Cerrone, a track I still love and play out 45 years later.”
Last
Static Cleaner Lost Reward
“Breathing Under Honey”
(Low Company, 2023)
“Weirdo future electronics from another galaxy. From Jon Hassell-esque tones and DIY dub to bleached-out post-punk stylings and way beyond. Out of Melbourne, this brings together so many past and present things I love sonically. The result is something timeless, but it’s also an album that could only have come out around about now.”
Always
Keith Hudson
“Playing It Cool & Playing It Right”
(Joint International, 1981)
“This album is canonical in my world. His take on the music of Jamaica is unlike anyone else’s. He ripped up the rule book – from the style of his vocals to the production and instrumentation. Often it feels like it’s collapsing in on itself, and the dubbing is a different kind of dub – more akin to Cabaret Voltaire’s ‘Sluggin’ Fer Jesus’ than ‘King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown’. Most of the tracks are older Hudson ones revisited and then taken out into deep, deep space.”
