What's That Noise? is the debut album by Coldcut, released in 1989. Guests on the album include: Lisa Stansfield on "People Hold On" and "My Telephone", Mark E. Smith (The Fall) on "(I'm) In Deep", Junior Reid on "Stop This Crazy Thing", Queen Latifah on "Smoke 1" and Yazz on "Doctorin' the House". Trouser Press wrote: "In between the vocal tracks are various 'Beats & Pieces', as one title has it: samples, melodies and grooves that help flesh out What’s That Noise?, a patchy but generally rewarding debut." The Stranger called the album a "classic LP [that] married cut-and-paste techniques with old-fashioned songwriting smarts."
English electronic producers in the 90s I am retroactively begging you to practice some restraint in your album lengths. I was enjoying this album a pretty good amount ("Stop This Crazy Thing" is awesome!), then I looked at the runtime and realized that, after listening for half an hour, I still had 40 minutes left to go! Point deducted for being too long, which is a shame because it's otherwise quite good.
Already a fan of Coldcut although I must admit I hadn't listened to this one until now due to it's lack of being readily availability. Great mix of vocal and instrumental tracks which would become the style of many of their albums to come. High energy and a blast to listen to. Although it must be said that the first track, "People Hold On" does sound noticeably different to the rest of the album but is still a great song none-the-less Stand out tracks: - My Telephone - Stop This Crazy Thing - No Connection
Brilliant house music. There was always something different about Coldcut - the variety of genres, the wittiness in the samples, a playfulness and genuine musicianship. So much House was formulaic and predictable. Coldcut were anything but. We need this on streaming services and soon!
Pretty cool and interesting album all things considered but I would definitely not be in a rush to listen to it again. It was kind of a lot. Favourite song Stop This Crazy Thing. (Also future me rereading these reviews listen to the first minute of the album again just do it)
Super fun, great for focusing at work.
This album is a 1995 24-Hour Fitness Spin Class jammed into a box.
Dope. Get it on YouTube definitely worth it
I don't know what I expected but it sure wasn't this. What a party! Danceable and fun. Delightful.
Why had I not ever heard of this? I mean, it seems like something that I would have listened to in 1989. I totally felt this jam!
Wow. 1001 albums featured a house collection that doesn't make me want to stab myself in the eardrums. I can actually put this one on and, you know, *listen* to it.
Whenever I see "British Electronic Music Group" on here (so basically every other day for the last 3 years) I always cross my fingers. Sometimes it's great, and sometimes it's awful. Today was great!
Standouts: Stop This Crazy Thing, People Hold On, My Telephone, No Connection, What’s That Noise.
Really good dance music, sounds ahead of its time for sure!
A good house/EDM/digital album.
It's an hour in the dance clubs. How did I never hear this as a teenager?
Toffe plaat. De samples zijn duidelijk uit elkaar te houden, waardoor je de intentie van de artiesten en hun skills beter kunt appreciëren.
What does waste look like in music? Some theory of it's behind criticism of records for length, feature lists or lack thereof, repetition, suitability for dancefloor or headphone. What's That Noise? doesn't electrify the body; It turns skits abstract, nonverbal, unmoors them from either pre- or proceeding. The electronic middleness is sprinkled with just enough, ending up good. Fair and fitting as a question without an answer.
I think something like this walked so someone like DJ Shadow could run. It's also an interesting note that Mark E. Smith and Queen Latifah were on the same fucking record. Back half is way stronger than the front. Favorite tracks: "Stop This Crazy Thing", "Smoke Dis One", "Not Paid Enough"
A pretty good edm album. Enjoyed the two listens. Could only find it on Youtube. 4/5!
I have had quite a problem with some of the electronic entries, because I don't really get house genres for example. But this album is captivating and I just find it extra cool that it's a debut from 1989
If you'd asked me who this was before I listened to it, I'd've told you I have no idea. I'm surprised at how many of these songs I know. Either from having heard them before or having been sampled by other groups.
This was probably not exactly the right choice for me today to listen to as I am a bit under the weather. But still it was clever and fun and expertly assembled. The cover is also awesome. Some of the songs were definite 5s for me, some not. Very entertaining!
Some good dancy dance electronic music from the late '80s. Although I didn't really recognize this (apart from many of the samples that were commonly used then!) it felt quite happily nostalgic for days of yore and kept me moving while I cleaned the kitchen.
Not on Spotify. Good YT album available though! Pretty eclectic west coast rap vibes. Enjoyed quite a bit!
Cet album inlassablement repris par de multiples rappeurs sous forme de sample m'a bien plu, mais sa présence unqiuement sur l'outil Youtube ne lui aurai jamais permis d'espèrer atteindre la note de 4 étoiles.
J'ai très peu d'estime pour la house music. Restez sur vos rooftops et nous faites pas chier.
British DJs. Its not bad, but I'm partial to electronica from the early 90s. Honestly I would probably give it a higher score if I hadnt had to listen to like 100 albums by mediocre british artists on this list already. 3/5
I prefer Coldcut’s later work. But this a fine album nonetheless.
Some ok stuff on here
Estuvo mejor de lo que esperaba.
Spotify doesn't have this album, and I'm too lazy to go find it on another platform, so I can't accurately rate the album. I did find another album they made in the late 80s (Some Like It Cold) and listened to that... they created a pretty nice blend of the 80s sound with early 90s hip hop beats, even got some reggae and latin vibes in there at different points. It got a little weird and/or monotonous at a few points, and I'm not sure exactly when I would listen to this music, but overall I liked it.
reminds me of louis and his style of music. not really my vibe, but it's interesting
Another British electronica album? Surprise surprise. Kinda hard to find what exact version to listen to since youtube has a different listing of tracks than wiki. It's at least varied enough that makes it interesting. Still very dated but it had some charm that made it better than the other bland EDM stuff on this list.
Hyvää musiikkia oikein mahtaavaa... sample albumi knspetri hullu puhelin konspti puhelin sanoo ring irng.. hello whos there HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA PUHELIN WHOS THERE HAHAHAH Kysyy sii skuka siellä toisella puollella puhelinlankoja.. uskomattoman avant garde... eclevctric...
Coupdn't listen in Aus.
Sample-lastiges Electronica-Album mit Gesangsfeaturen. Mal funky, mal Disco, mal HipHop - insgesamt spaßig und cool zum Nebenbeihören.
“People Hold On” is a classic track, a great pop/club crossover. I was hoping at least one critic would mention the socially-conscious lyrics, like house music’s answer to Marvin Gaye, but no luck – instead all they talk about is Lisa Stansfield “belting” it out. “Not Paid Enough” or at least Coldcut’s remix of “Paid in Full” was also ubiquitous back in the day and was a masterclass in sampling, though it doesn’t seem to be listed as a track on the album, just on the YouTube version – possibly they had issues getting paid by Eric B & Rakim? Anyway, a number of the other songs I found a bit show-offy, like they were trying to out-sample their competitors, which leaves the music sounding a bit too fractured up for me.
The first song sounded like disco which had me worried but they then went off on a couple of electronic tangents that were quite good and had cool percussion. They then dabbled in some areas that were less interesting.
2nd October 2023 Listened on the 4th while sorting the house. Perfect housework music which will have given this a higher score than it otherwise might have got.
It has its moments, but I found myself waiting for it to end.
Wow, I don't know if I've heard an album so completely of its era, as much as this album is. Generally a solid 3, but I really liked "(I'm) In Deep" with Mark E. Smith. Quick moving, housey/clubby, peppered with random blips and samples. A bit silly at times, but it was fun. Not available on Spotify, but easily found on YouTube. Fave Songs: (I'm) In Deep, Stop This Crazy Thing, Which Doctor?, Theme From "Reportage," My Telephone
House 100% 80's. El seu to anyenc i superat convida a la nostàlgia i és inevitable fer un somriure al sentir els scratches, els samples i el so en general del disc, tan del moment. Però és un bon treball, amb temes que van ajudar a definir l'any, com 'People Hold On' i altres joies amagades com 'Which Doctor?' o 'Stop This Crazy Thing'
This LP was fine, if a little long. It thrives mainly on its unlimited energy, tapping into a constant but varied rhythmic flow to keep things moving at a pounding tempo. Some of the melodic leitmotifs got old quick, and some tracks were a bit too similar to one another, but I got some good work done while this was on and didn't hate it so by 1001 standards it's solid for sure.
Another album not on Spotify so had to listen on YouTube which doesn’t give the full experience, I enjoyed this good dance album using samples one I’d come back to if it was available on streaming, so would agree this deserves to be on the list.
pretty damn good
I find this genre so boring! 🥱 Also, too many samples.
Not really something I see my self revisiting but it was pretty enjoyable b
really not bad. je sens que ca l'a influencer par ses différents sons. un peu long par exemple. aurait pu avoir une meilleure note si écourté 6/10
Ça brassait, un peu long mais j'ai aimé le bibe. 3.8
Funky and fun. 3 stars.
This was really fun. It's especially impressive that it came out in 89. Just a little too long 3
This one kind of blew my mind. I was big into Coldcut and Ninja Tune during the trip-hop era of the mid-90s, but I never knew how long they had already been around, much less that their first album was this kind of late-80s Lisa Stansfield-type house. But they also got Mark E. Smith and Queen Latifah on there as well? Weird. I can't really listen to this era of music because it just sounds extremely dated and reminds me too much of middle school. It was interesting to learn about Coldcut's roots, but yeah, I think I'll stick with Let Us Play.
I'm Amish, I live without electricity.
This album is not on Spotify. Found it on YT though. '89 hm....dance type 80's reminds me of what I imagine Paula Abdul sounds like. Yeah very clubby. Hm this track is almost industrial. Lots of funky sounds in some of these tracks, like ringing of phones, and crickets and lots of fun with the synth. Stop this Crazy Thing is catchy. Has some brass in it. Smoke dis one, I like the old school rap sound there. Okay cool stuff but only a 2 in my book for today.
Not my era. My mother in law would love it however.
I weet niet zo goed wat ik hiermee moet.
It's a dance album with a million samples. I can't really tell where other artists' creativity ends and theirs begins, plus house is just never going to move the needle for me. Best track: Stop This Crazy Thing
They wer ahead of their time, if not their time signature.
there’s something interesting here, but it’s pretty lost on me. probably sounds a lot better if you’re on e in a basement in south london, but sadly i am at work doing economics research.
Couldn't bring myself to listen to it all. Really not my thing. Has some decent tunes, but also some really obnoxious ones.
Besides 'People Hold On', which brought back some memories, not a lot to say. Not for me.
I thought I would love this after the opening bars of "people hold on" but ultimately got most satisfaction from hearing all the samples best known elsewhere.
This was pretty fun, but I'll never listen to it again.
Techno, crappy.
Didn’t do much for me.
I'm cool with house music but I don't think this is worth much of a listen. Rough around the edges with certain elements that don't pan out that well.
I do not need another DJ album mixing and sampling sounds. There is a place for it but not on this list. I don't mind it occasionally but I don't need a 50 minute album of it. Still better than some of the albums on this list.
Never heard this!
Ok, some good ones but wouldn’t seek it out again
I like when it sounds closer to hip hop than Electronica. It's not something I plan I ever revisiting but it wasn't too painful. It was way too long.
I had to listen to it on YouTube so that already put me off a bit. It was ok but I agree the tracks a lil too long.
Disgusting techno-crap
Can’t listen to it as it isn’t available in my region.
New rule - if I can’t find you on Spotify or Apple Music auto 01
Als je al niet eens de moeite neemt om een album op Spotify te laten staan, dan stik er maar in
I think the name of this album works both for people that like it, and those that despise it. Unfortunately, I'm much closer to that latter group. It was just a bunch of noise that I couldn't fins a key into. It seemed very chaotic and random, just for the sake of chaos and randomness. I didn't have any fun listening to this album and honestly, I would just rather forget about it.
Wow, this did not age well. I'm surprised that it was released in 1989, the beats and vocal stylings sound older than that. The first song, People hold on was bearable because Lisa Stansfield has a good voice, but I couldn't take the remainder of the record.
This whole album is a disjointed, noisy mess. And it's not even an original mess. It's a trash pile made out of other peoples' work. This wasn't worth the time it took to hunt the album down.
Better than some bland dance music...but just barely. 1.5/5
Opening song slapped, hated everything else. I’m glad I could only find a few songs from this as even half an hour was too much, the full 65 minutes would have been a nightmare
Yeah this was not something I enjoyed having to find. When I found it I didn’t enjoy listening to it. It was just noise noise noise. Cannot recommend. No thank you!
It may not be the fairest reaction, but when I’m generated an album that isn’t on Apple Music I can’t help but sigh. I want an easy life! Instead, I’ve had to find the album on YouTube and play it that way. It’s such a hard life. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: My Telephone This may have been at somewhat of a disadvantage as it was a little too similar to yesterday’s album. Dance music misses more than it hits for me, and this unfortunately misses a fair bit. There were certainly catchy parts, but it just left me feeling bored after only a few tracks. For people really into house music, this might be amazing. I just don’t think I’m the target market.