• Music

  • 20 years from Delta Heavy

The tour kicked off on March 23 2002 in Miami. Having gotten into the guys too late to be cool this tour for me was peak Sasha & Digweed. Instead of 1995 or something. Also having internet at home for the first time around then probably helped a lot. No way you could access the mixes and whatnot without internet in Finland. Sasha also played his first gig in Finland only later that year, Digweed the next year.

    Everyone has their ‘peak Sarsha’ era, I suppose it depends a lot on when you got into them.

    For me, it was 1998-2001, spanning that Expeditions and that absolute banger of a Sarsha Essential Mix:

    To me, that was their real era of drop the hammer power prog. I saw a lot of djs around that time and although Seaman, Warren, Cattaneo et al seemed to play a lot of the same stuff, it was Sasha and Digweed who always had the most upfront tunes, best sequenced, best mixed with the best journeys.

      alistair that is not actually a thing. Warren did play Helsinki a bunch, and still does. He was there last summer.

          bosstrabs oh yeah, I worked my way back. Thanks again to internet. That’s still my favorite Sasha-mix.

            Two young to see Sarsha and/or Diggers at their best - stuck with raves rather than nightclubs (should’ve done Twilo as it was 18+ but c’est la vie) - but Delta Heavy was fun. Doesn’t sound great now (or even any good) but Rui Da Silva’s Fire brought the house down.

              Homegrove Having gotten into the guys too late to be cool this tour for me was peak Sasha & Digweed

              Yes I do remember that you only got in to them just as they and prog in general started to rapidly turn to shit. Seems rather fitting.

              Not seen that doc before though, so thanks for the link at least.

                jonattonyeah (should’ve done Twilo as it was 18+

                Was it? Thought it was 21… Didn’t manage to go there for that reason.

                    bosstrabs Everyone has their ‘peak Sarsha’ era, I suppose it depends a lot on when you got into them.

                    For me, it was 1998-2001

                    1998-2001 was the peak Sasha era - he released his two solo GU CDs, his biggest tune, had the Twilo residency, it was the height of the superclub era etc. etc.. I don’t see how it’s even a debate.

                        hugopal I don’t see how it’s even a debate.

                        Some prefer Shelly’s or Northern Exposure I and II era, quite reasonably.

                            jonattonyeah Doesn’t sound great now (or even any good) but Rui Da Silva’s Fire brought the house down.

                            Are you saying that ‘Fire’ doesn’t sound great now, or in general the music from that era?

                            Prog was def on the slide then while ‘Fire’ was one of the few quality tunes from the time - I still think it sounds pretty good though.

                                Really Prog was dead the minute Pete Tong started playing prog-heavy sets.

                                hugopal

                                A bit of both but more about “Fire”. It’s just so….long. I can’t imagine how anyone would fit it into any set outside of the year 2002. Did anyone other than Sasha even play it?

                                    bosstrabs the Shelley’s stuff is mostly cheese.

                                    With the NE era so much of it seemed to be together with Diggers? Could it be that Sasha came in to his own even more as an individual from 98?

                                    Anyway, people may still prefer other eras, but if you’re objectively talking his “peak” then it still has to be 98-01, in that it was when the clubbing scene was at its most booming and he was at his most successful and the height of his popularity within that. The only time he ever topped the DJ Mag top 100 DJs readers poll was 2000 for instance (although tbf he was at least 3rd in 1997).