Bomb the Bass

by John Bush
Bomb the Bass Tim Simenon is a sampladelic British hip-hop producer who also co-produced a pair of massive international hits: Neneh Cherrys Buffalo Stance and Seals Crazy. Born in Brixton of Malaysian and Scottish parentage, Simenon grew interested in dance production after studying studio engineering and DJing at Londons Wag Club, a Mecca for fellow breakbeat mavens like S-Express Mark Moore and Coldcuts Jonathan More and Matt Black. In 1987, Simenon constructed a pastiche of a DJ record titled Beat Dis which incorporated samples from Public Enemy to Ennio Morricone to classic television shows Dragnet and The Thunderbirds. Packaged to resemble a white-label import from America, the track became an underground hit and, after its reissue on Rhythm King, a surprising number two smash on the British charts in early 1988. (Coldcuts Doctorin the House and S-Express Theme From S-Express both followed Beat Dis into the Top Ten.)
Later that year, Simenon followed with an LP (Into the Dragon) featuring an expanded Bomb the Bass lineup: producer Jonathan Saul Kane (who later recorded as Depth Charge) and vocalists Maureen Walsh and Lauraine Macintosh. Two singles from the album, Megablast and an inventive cover of the Burt Bacharach-Dionne Warwick classic Say a Little Prayer, hit the British Top Ten as well. Also in 1988, Simenon co-produced two tracks for the debut of Neneh Cherry, step-daughter of free jazz trumpeter Don Cherry. Both singles, Buffalo Stance and Manchild, became British Top Ten hits. After completing work on his own studio, he also produced a track for Adamski (Killer) and mixed a single named Crazy for an Adamski protégé, Seal.
With all the outside recording commissions, it took nearly three years for Simenon to ready a follow-up to the first Bomb the Bass LP. Unknown Territory finally dropped in 1991, led by another Top Ten single, Winter in July, and sporting a mid-tempo hip-hop aesthetic that would only earn critical attention several years later after being dubbed trip-hop. He also produced a range of acts, from Eternal to Sinead OConnor during the early 90s, and more fruits of his collaborative nature arrived in 1995 with the third Bomb the Bass album, Clear. The album featured vocal tracks featuring OConnor, Justin Warfield, Bernard Fowler, Bim Sherman, and Leslie Winer, as well as the instrumental of Tackhead/On-U Sound compatriots Keith LeBlanc, Doug Wimbish, and Skip McDonald. Simenon again turned to outside work during the late 90s, remixing and producing for David Bowie, Depeche Mode, U2, Gavin Friday, Curve, Booth & The Bad Angel, and Hardfloor.