Utah Saints - Two (2000)

Vintage Slice of Techno from the late 90s

Here’s another dance album from the early 2000's from another electronic techno British duo who took a while to make their sophomore CD. The Utah Saints, however, took an extra long time – almost 8 years from 1992 to be precise to release their second album - incidentally titled Two in 2000 and their third album even after 14 years is still in the works!! 

Those of you who have now probably crossed middle age might remember the last self -titled Utah Saints debut album. It’s the one that spawned the club rave hit “Something Good” thanks to a well-placed Kate Bush sample. Kate Bush is nowhere to be found on Two, but Michael Stipe of R.E.M. fame appears on two tracks (“Sun” and “Punk Club”). His contribution sounds like little more than a rambling answering machine message that the band then cut up and turned into a vocal track. Chuck D of Public Enemy fame also appears on Two, providing a little muscle to the pounding beats of the appropriately titled “Power to the Beats.” 

On Two, the Utah Saints duo Jez Willis and Tim Garbutt sound like a electronica techno band that’s been around for a long, long time but hasn’t stopped recording. There are tracks here that represent all phases of the last 2 decades of electronic music. You can hear the influence of everyone from Fatboy Slim to the Crystal Method to the Propellerheads to Daft Punk on this disc, which actually sounds more like a mediocre techno outfit’s “Greatest Hits” compilation than one band’s current release. Still, this is an authentic vintage slice of the late 90s music that every techno fan must listen to!