J.Bo Tape #6 & #7: LTJ Bukem & MC Conrad - The Essential Mix - 16Jul1995

Believe me, like, I don't want to go into a long thing about our next artist because he really expresses it musically himself...


The. Most. Essential.
Essential Mix. Ever.


1995 was the year that drum & bass forced its way out of the underground. A week before One In The Jungle exploded across the airways, the world renowned Essential Mix show featured the LTJ alongside MC Conrad. So underground was this sound that even Pete Tong, himself about to push the genre over the top with the release of Goldie's Timeless on his FFRR imprint, had no idea who Bukem was and pronounces his name wrong throughout the show! The tracklisting that appeared in Mixmag the following week backed up the fact that this sound was on the cutting edge as it mostly read along the lines of "unknown - untitled (acetate)"... of course, you can now view the full tracklisting in the ID3 tags of the MP3s and the comments below.

This mix blew people's minds wide open, especially those who had been dismissing the jungle/d&b scene up until then. Those not in the know couldn't believe that music running at 160bpm could be mellow and relaxing and that an MC could enhance and relax the ambiance in the way we hear here, rather than just hype the crowd. For those that listen and think it sounds like the Bukem they know, remember that at the time it was all new and the first time many people, even those deeply into jungle/drum&bass, had heard anything like it. To show how new it was and how quickly it progressed, I have a Bukem Fantazia mix from just half a year earlier that was a totally different sound... that was a favourite tape too so it will be posted with priority. So all in all, this is an unmissable moment in history that you just have to hear:

********** NEW LINKS 07-Jul-2020 **********

LTJ Bukem & MC Conrad - Essential Mix - 16Jul1995

Source: Memorex CRX S60-Type II
Duration: 1h58m35s (58m50s + 59m44s)
Format: MP3-192kbps
Size: 162.8MB (80.8MB + 82.0MB)
Download: CLICK HERE

LTJ Bukem - Essential Mix on Mixcloud

Ease the pressure, ease the pain - let the vibe hit the main vein...