The English electronic music group 808 State will re-release their past singles from the ZTT archive every Friday over the next few months. Many of them have never been on a digital platform before. All sound sources have been remastered at Abbey Road Studios.
The second weeks remastered single is “In Yer Face –EP“. Contains 5 songs including a remix version. You can listen to it below.
The band commented on social media;
Today’s remastered 808/ZTT single is “ In Yer Face “
https://808state.ffm.to/inyerfaceLooking back on the week of April 23rd 1990 ,808 State were ensconced at Square One Studios in Bury -working on Tunes Splits The Atom ,we were also completing a second mix of Olympic now with the heavy riff that became the theme tune to “The Word”. We were so pleased with this riff that we wrote a spin off track based on it to be used as a B side for the Tommy Boy release of Cubik (July 90) entitled “EuroTrack(In Yer Face Mix)” on the U.S.white label ,It became “In Yer Face (In Yer Face Mix/Mancunian Delight )” on the promo 12 inch- Confused ? you will be!
Let’s hear it again for B side culture! Because that freedom always gave bold results .Cubik also started as a B Side and bounced back as an in demand import from across the Atlantic.
In Yer Face was working well in our live set during the summer of 1990 and was tested out on the dance floor by The Spin Masters on Saturday nights at Manchester’s legendary Thunderdome club .
IYF would become the first single when Ex El album was released in February 1991 . The Video footage in the Promo for IYF was shot at The Ku Club in Ibiza at an event called ” Re Live The Dream” in September 1990 – You see even in 1990 there was an acid revival from the mid 80s !The flip side ,Leo Leo was recorded at Revolution Studios in Manchester later that year when we were rounding off the Ex El album .
I remember we performed it on a local TV Christmas special sat on Bob Greaves bed with all the synths , A random choice of track ,probably because it was still warm out of the oven .
I believe the rap by Raagman was put on a bit later as an bonus for the single release .
Raagman was part of our crew from the early days ,you would have seen him as one of MC Tune’s dancers. If you go back to some of the early 808 State gigs from the late 80s ,Raagman ,Tunes and other rappers are voicing all over the acid music in a kind of experimental hybrid .As was the norm back then ,we released a second edition of the 12 inch to bump the single up the charts – A new mix of “In Yer Face “ called “Facially Yours “ with the more melodic ending . And we included the original Leo Leo inexplicably relabelled “The Poonchanting Instrumental “ New language for a new music .
In Yer Face has been reborn in recent years with the Bicep remix ,which is way more functional in todays big room arenas -Our original is a War & Peace concept album crushed into 3 minutes that accidentally became a top 10 pop record.You must have been all off your heads!
The cover art is again by Johnson & Panas who designed so many great sleeves for Factory Records. It’s an homage to the glorious TDK SA90 – In fact it works best as the cassette single art work ! which happened to be the standard way of getting sound into your rave wagon back then ,you were posh if you had a CD player in your car at this point!
In Yer Face (Edit)
Leo Leo (featuring Raagman)
In Yer Face -In Yer Face Mix
In Yer Face -Facially Yours Remix
Leo Leo- Poonchanting Instrumental
