Northern Exposure (album)
Northern Exposure is the second mix album by British DJ duo Sasha & John Digweed. Released on 27 September 1996, it is the first in their Northern Exposure series, followed by Northern Exposure 2 in 1997 and Northern Exposure: Expeditions in 1999.[3] There is both a British edition released by Ministry of Sound and an American edition released by Ultra Records in 1997. The British package contains both CDs, whereas the American only has the first disc. In 2013, the album was certified silver in the UK.[4]
| Northern Exposure | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | 27 September 1996 | |||
| Recorded | 1990-96 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 146:45 | |||
| Label |
| |||
| Producer | ||||
| Sasha & John Digweed chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Sasha chronology | ||||
| ||||
| John Digweed chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    (Single disc version) [1] |
| Muzik | [2] |
Background
The album is a concept album of tracks specially selected and mixed as two different "journeys", the first being the north journey, and the second being the south journey. The DJ duo's following mix albums are also concept albums.
Another version of Northern Exposure was also released as a quadruple vinyl LP in the UK released with the record label of Ministry of Sound. It differs greatly from the CD in that the tracks are not mixed, lacking any DJ-driven transition between tracks. Sasha and Digweed also removed some of the tracks and shuffled the remaining tracks around, to make a new "journey" experience to the listeners. Some tracks are also changed from the North disc to the South disc and vice versa.
Reception
The album reached number 7 initially in the UK Compilation Chart. In The Mix ranked Northern Exposure the 5th best mix album of all time in its list of the top 30 ever, saying it's "considered the pinnacle of Sasha and Digweed’s joint efforts, Northern Exposure confirmed the mastery of both DJs. It’s what every mix-CD wants to be: timeless"[5] Rolling Stone ranked the album as the 25th "greatest EDM album ever", saying "good DJs take you on a journey", Welsh and English icons Sasha and John Digweed (respectively) – whether working together or separately – specialized on rolling the listener through Nineties EDM's most bucolic landscapes. Their best-loved mix CD is a trippy traipse through the verdant world of progressive house, a genre with one foot in the rave and the other somewhere in the great beyond. Track titles like "Raincry" (by God Within) and "Out of Body Experience" (by Rabbit in the Moon) tell you plenty about where this music's head is at. Also on this nature hike: William Orbit, well before he met Madonna."[6]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Satellite Serenade" (The Orb's Transasianexpress Mix) | Keiichi Suzuki | 10:40 |
| 2. | "Cascade (Part 1)" | The Future Sound of London | 7:05 |
| 3. | "These Waves" | Young American Primitive | 4:24 |
| 4. | "Raincry (Submerged)" | God Within | 7:51 |
| 5. | "Out of Body Experience" | Rabbit in the Moon | 7:07 |
| 6. | "I Am Free" (Playdo's Minimalist Mix / The Full-Length La Serrena Mix) | Morgan King | 7:22 |
| 7. | "Kites" (Purple Haze's Fantasy Flite Part One) | Ultraviolet | 4:11 |
| 8. | "Obsession" (William Orbit's Quantum Loop Mix) | Fuzzy Logic featuring Erire | 4:59 |
| 9. | "Water from a Vine Leaf" (Spooky's Xylem Flow Mix) | William Orbit | 6:49 |
| 10. | "Liquid Cool" (Deep Forest's Ice Cold @ the Equator Mix) | Apollo 440 | 6:25 |
| 11. | "Last Train to Lhasa" | Banco de Gaia | 10:45 |
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Wave Dub" | Dope on Plastic | 5:59 |
| 2. | "Sound System" (Underworld Mix) | Drum Club | 7:02 |
| 3. | "The Gloom" | Castle Trancelott | 6:38 |
| 4. | "Wavespeech" (Junior Vasquez Mix) | Pete Lazonby | 6:08 |
| 5. | "Phoenix" | Evolution | 7:07 |
| 6. | "Dusk" | The Light | 3:48 |
| 7. | "Plan 94 (The Voyage)" | X Tracks | 5:46 |
| 8. | "I Can't Stop" | Mellow Mellow | 4:32 |
| 9. | "Heliopolis" (Eedupolis Dog Mix) | Banco de Gaia | 3:33 |
| 10. | "East" (Opium Den Mix) | Humate and Rabbit in the Moon | 7:36 |
| 11. | "Dark & Long" (Dark Train) | Underworld | 10:58 |
Charts
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Compilation (Official Charts Company)[7] | 7 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[4] | Silver | 60,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- Northern Exposure at AllMusic
- George, Iestyn (October 1996). "Sasha & John Digweed: Northern Exposure" (PDF). Muzik. No. 17. p. 128. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- "10 gems from Sasha and John Digweed's 'Northern Exposure' mix". Mixmag. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- "British album certifications – Various Artists – Northern Exposure - Sasha & John Digweed". British Phonographic Industry.
- "A Farewell from inthemix: Thanks for All the Memories". 31 October 2018. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016.
- "The 30 Greatest EDM Albums". Rolling Stone. 2 August 2012.
- "Official Compilations Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 August 2018.