Alan Braxe, Fred Falke & Friends

this classic cult compilation returns remastered, reissued and expanded with seven bonus tracks, including Braxe’s remix of Britney Spears’ “Anticipating,” and two completely new tracks “True Love” and “Never Coming Back,” which features the Norwegian pop artist Annie.

Alan Braxe says of the release, “Almost twenty years have elapsed between the original release of this compilation album and the 2023 reissue. When I look at the artwork and the tracklist, a multitude of very good memories pop up to my mind, instant flashbacks to the fun we had - Fred Falke and I working on our early collaborative tracks, same with Romuald, Thomas and Benjamin, working on songs we never thought could meet some interest twenty years later. Working at night on a last minute additional remix for Britney Spears and pressing Rec Stop at 9am as FedEx is at the door to pick up the master tape; remix is not finished, two minute length only, but well, that’s life, let’s give it a chance. All of this music has been done with a strong DIY state of mind. It’s about doing things the best you can with your current knowledge, accepting all the imperfections and moving forward. This reissue is coming with bonus tracks all done with the same state of mind, as well as revised artwork which transcripts what a busy home studio looks like. Hope you’ll like all of this. Thanks, A.” If you want to understand how French producer Alan Braxe ended up making some of the most important house music records of the late 1990s and early 2000s, you need to understand his modus operandi. Everything must be simple, and everything must be sincere. You hear this repeatedly in Braxe’s music, from the golden emotional minimalism of Stardust’s “Music Sounds Better With You” to the perfectly uncluttered house music strut of “Intro.” The Upper Cuts, originally released in 2005, rounds up several of Braxe’s greatest hits, including “Music Sounds Better With You,” his classic remix of “At Night” by Shakedown and - most prominently - his work with Fred Falke, a bass player Braxe met on military service. Braxe and Falke’s union created some of the best house music records of the 2000s, with Falke’s slinky, melodious and very funky bass lines fitting like a glove around Braxe’s production know-how and ear for a melody. The revival of interest in the first wave of French Touch producers makes 2023 the perfect time to re-release The Upper Cuts, which has long been out of print. This newly reissued version adds seven bonus tracks. These include the classic Braxe / Falke production “Chrystal City,” which originally appeared on the “Rubicon” single; Braxe’s iconic remix of Britney Spears’ “Anticipating”; “You’ll Stay In My Heart,” a tear-jerking Braxe / Falke work that was never properly released; and two completely new tracks that show Braxe at his best. The Upper Cuts is a classic work of house music history that can still light up a dance floor; a work of sadness and joy; darkness and light; profundity and release. If you want to know how Braxe helped to create a new template for the French house sound in the early 2000s, right when French house needed it most; or how Braxe’s gorgeously clean productions and evocative synth melody provided a bridge between the first wave of French house and the Ed Banger / Justice / Kitsuné axis that followed; then your answer starts here.