Review: VA - Thirty Years Of Freerange Vol. 1 (Freerange Records)

30 years is a long-time and in Freerange Records timezone they're celebrating with 30 tracks from 30 artists on 5 EPs - and VOLUME ONE is here!

There's certainly no shortage of folks that are more than happy to be involved with Jimpster's label, don't forget, they've just released Crackazat's incredible "jazz-funk" album 'SUN' (see review HERE) so this is the first set of "a handpicked cross-section of the Freerange continuum from artists who’ve shaped the sound alongside up and coming voices pushing it somewhere new. Different shades, different voices, same ethos: independence, longevity, and an unwavering commitment to the dancefloor and beyond".

And when I say they kick-off strong with Ralph Session featuring the incredible Brandon Markell Holmes, with 'Everything' - I mean deep.  But it gets better, our favourite Berlin based New Zealand excile, Philippa slips in some 'Mixed Messages' which is on the trans-europe express main-line high speed dancefloor; even the vocoder vocals fits this track perfectly.

With Palm Skin Productions there's always something to be aware of and here its in the ACID warp factor - one for late nights.

And talking of dancefloor royalty, Philadephia legend Josh Wink confides with 'NGF' which gets very busy towards the end.  Apparently, Spain's Nacho Marco was last on the label 20 years ago so 'The Flying Fox' is a we'll return.

All that said, we've always loved Lovebirds (aka Sebastian Döring) and he ends this set with a track called 'Janet Nice' and I'm sure she is but this 7 mins of slo-mo shuffle is even better.

When you think that there's going to be another 4 Volumes - this is a series you want to invest in this summer - don't miss out.

BUY LINK / PRE-ORDER: 30 Years Of Freerange - Volume One | Freerange Records

Artist: Various Artists

Release: Thirty Years Of Freerange Vol. 1
Release Date: 29th May, 2025
Label: Freerange Records
Catalog Number: TBC
Format: LP Vinyl / Digital / BANDCAMP