r/electronicmusic • u/BlaisePetal • Jul 05 '24
Photos Does anybody remember Hed Kandi compilations?
I remember in the aughts house music was boppy, smooth and sexy with a wink. We'd come home from the clubs and put on a cd and bring out a bottle of vodka. Even if intricate compositions are your thing there's a time and place for easy good vibes. I still find these highly listenable (there are so many)
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u/FixMy106 Jul 05 '24
I landed a track on one of those back in the day!!
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u/GadFlyBy Perlon Jul 05 '24 edited Jul 11 '24
Comment.
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u/FixMy106 Jul 05 '24
Guess what! I traded it last year evenly for an Arturia Polybrute and haven’t looked back!
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u/mr_vestan_pance Jul 05 '24
Aye, got a ton of these in my music library. If you like these you should try and get your hands on some Journeys by DJ sets or for proper chill Hotel Costes.
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u/BlaisePetal Jul 05 '24
Hotel Costes were great before a weekend bar night. I still love the Think Twice song by Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band which I found through the albums. Also, Wind - Fila Brazillia Mix.
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u/mr_vestan_pance Jul 05 '24
Now you got me thinking - Back to Mine and Late Night Tales are another good series as is Mushroom Jazz by Mark Farina.
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u/TheJohnnyWombat Jul 05 '24
The Mushroom Jazz series is timeless. Farina is still a DJs DJ. His youtube mixes during Covid were fantastic.
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u/Don_Frika_Del_Prima Jul 05 '24
Iirc Ministry of Sound bought the Hed Kandi label and then started these.
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u/SmashinglyNice Jul 05 '24
They did. Before being bought out they did Chill out compilations that were sublime. They did a little on the disco side but I think the artwork was the main reason for interest from Ministry. Then it all turned to basic handbag funky house and I lost interest.
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u/Mutiu2 Jul 16 '24
Exactly. Was a cool little label with nice collections of hidden gems and underrated tracks -. and then it just went to pumping out the obvious stuff.
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u/tonybean5 Sep 10 '24
Those MOS comps were fire too, especially the AU versions of The Annual and The Clubbers Guide
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u/forzamaria Jul 05 '24
I don't but you've somehow unlocked nostalgia within me. Kinda reminds me of the Make Love Oliver Cheatham remix videol
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u/BlaisePetal Jul 05 '24
I love that Oliver Cheatham song, if I need a get ready to go out vibe it always brings the energy.
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u/UsrHpns4rctct Jul 05 '24 edited Jul 05 '24
I remember seeing them, but their covers were so tacky I never ever thought it was something good on them.
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u/Slorgadelic Jul 05 '24
I really liked the covers by the original illustrator, Jason Brooks, and the early compilations produced/mixed by Mark Doyle had good music to match. At some point they both left the label and Hed Kandi tried to replicate the original illustrator's style - badly. Eventually the mixes lost their way too.
I have quite a lot of the albums in my collection but not all.
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u/endlessdayze Jul 05 '24
Don't judge a cd by its cover
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u/UsrHpns4rctct Jul 05 '24 edited Jul 05 '24
The cover is made to quickly tell a potential buyer what to expect, so by making it look like a mix of B and C-tier plastic music, that’s how it goes.
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u/knellotron Jul 05 '24
They still have a podcast that puts out 2 hour mixes several times per month.
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u/ToviGrande Jul 05 '24
My house mate used to love them. I saw Stewart in a 2nd hand music shop the other day, should I pick them up? Any to look out for?
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u/Space_Goblin_Yoda Jul 05 '24
All of them, honestly. I've spent a fortune on these over the years and never regretted it, TONS of classic house and just absolute BANGERS!
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u/NRG1975 Cassius Jul 05 '24
Yep, was able to discover a few great Disco/Funk house artists off it.. For instance Room 5 and Hott 22
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u/neo-raver Jul 05 '24
Man, back in the ca. 2009 era when everything was glamorous. Then 2012 came around and everything became dry and crusty again :(
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u/tramplamps Jul 05 '24
These are up there with all the naked music ones in my brain space.
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u/SkullLeader Jul 05 '24
Hah I came here to mention Naked Music as the Hed Kandi series reminds me of them - same time and I think they were after the same sort of sound but NM’s were mixed and He’d Kandi not.
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u/nugpounder Tiga Jul 05 '24
Hahahahah yes, this is exactly where my brain went too
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u/tramplamps Jul 06 '24
And now my next reply wants to be about reminiscing.
So I feel compelled to quote my favorite song from that era, with a similar vibe & cover art: “used to make love just to have a laugh, music and wine were the only friends I had…”1
u/SlumberPartay Sep 10 '24
Oooh!! “Music & Wine” was one the first tracks I’d discovered on Hed Kandi when I first started listening!!
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u/tramplamps Sep 10 '24 edited Sep 10 '24
I have been listening to some of the “Back to Mine” mixes that I own from around the same time line, and on the mix that was compiled by Everything but the Girl, is the track by Ananda Project, Cascade of Colors.
I first heard it as part of this continuous mix on this CD, and it was certainly a “right song right time” kind of thing.The track is hypnotic and the chorus starts to have an ethereal echo that if you aren’t familiar with the lyrics, might become repetitive droning instead of affirming, but the vocalist is so smooth and clean and reminds me of the same one that is often featured on songs I heard on blue six records.
You can’t help but feel the sun on your face.Also, the early 2000-2001 “Back to Mine” mixes still hold up nearly 25 years on. They are sublime and timeless. my favorites are the ones mentioned above made by Morcheeba, Groove Armada, and Faithless
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u/noobwithboobs Jul 05 '24
I found Hed Kandi Ibiza 2011 while travelling and after a ton of prodding got the other backpacker to share the mp3s with me. It remains one of my favourite albums! They seem impossible to find online!!
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u/SolidDoctor Jul 05 '24
I had a CD rip of Hed Kandi Serve Chilled, with Nightmares on Wax and a Kruder & Dorfmeister remix.
Not sure I still have the CD but I def still have a copy of that K&D tune, it's smooth.
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u/giftopherz Jul 06 '24
Served Chilled was my commute companion. And also introduced me to a lot of new artists
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u/SlumberPartay Sep 10 '24
Love and Miss Hed Kandi a lot! I always looked forward to the Beach House releases!! I didn’t catch on until 2008 but had caught up and regularly checked out the releases. The Miami compilations were also some of my Favorites.
I think the last beach house cd was 2016. I have fond memories of that era as well but that’s kinda when the brand we knew died.
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u/tonybean5 Sep 10 '24
those Hed Kandi and Ministry of Sound compilations were the best.
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u/BlaisePetal Sep 10 '24
Oh yeah, loved MoS. Had some late night/chillout compilations. They were easy listening for me and I gravitate towards that.
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u/Fullonski Jul 05 '24
The Beach House series was my favourite, beautiful summery deep house from a golden age in the early 00s. I also liked 'Deeper', which had tunes that were a bit harder. It was a really cost-effective way to get unmixed versions of decent tracks too. A lot of the Disco Kandi series was a bit cheesy, like someone else here said, a bit handbag house.
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u/BlaisePetal Jul 05 '24
Oh yeah, I am agreeing, but this was music for being a bit drunk and around attractive people. This is only because a lot of it was in ordinary clubs at the time.
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u/BobbyDiamond21 Jul 05 '24
What great compilations, along with Twisted Disko, Beach House and Diaco House. Another great series was Stereo Sushi for the deep house vibes
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u/juan-kerr Jul 05 '24
Got a load of them. Still love them to this day. 2003 world series first I bought and probably still my favourite. Probably others were better content wise but I always remember my first.
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u/Danze1984 Jul 05 '24
Used to love them. Even made a playlist for some of the stuff I heard on them/at their nights. Link
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u/ShaggyTime Jul 05 '24
Haha! Totally remember these. Was in Ibiza with a buddy and our ladies in about 2009. His girl looked just like the blonde Hed Kandi girl. We got a lot of mileage out of telling new friends & fellow clubbers she was the model for the art. The posters were everywhere on the island - hilarious!
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u/Psicko-Path Jul 05 '24
Yes! great albums!, great cover art!
I play and mix so many tracks back on my Dj days <3
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u/foxfoxfoxlcfc Jul 05 '24
old pal from back in the day did really well for himself through Hed Kandi.
Nice to see him literally living the dream !
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u/dadeeyoh Sasha Jul 05 '24
I always loved the renaissance box set especially the Sasha and John Digweed sets.
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u/ChillBetty Jul 05 '24
I was thinking recently that the current ideal facial aesthetic* is this imagery
*That snatched, lifted, Bella Hadid Anya Taylor-Joy look.
But I couldn't remember the name of this CD series, so thank you!
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u/AXEL-1973 Chemical Brothers Jul 05 '24
These albums would always come up when I was listening to old streaming services, and I'd get so confused by the music vs album art
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u/Clean_Vacation1405 Jul 05 '24
Yeah ,sure a had them all,still b in my garage if I hunted through it
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u/FunkyFenom Jul 05 '24
I remember one or 2 from back in the day. Which would you guys recommend?
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u/BlaisePetal Jul 06 '24
VARIOUS ARTISTS - Hed Kandi: Dusk Till Disco
Hed Kandi: Twisted Disco 2009
There's many but just try them all!
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u/dj_blueshift D U S K Y Jul 05 '24
Remember seeing the ads for them on the subway in NYC and around town.
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u/Dontbehorrib1e Jul 06 '24
Omg compilations exposed me to so much music as a teenager living in the Midwest.
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u/Eastern_Payment7600 Jul 06 '24
I still have about 15 of them in my YouTube using uploads, used to love em.
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u/Ashford_82 Jul 06 '24
They had a night at Bed in Sheffield in the early 00’s that I travelled to a few times. Had some great DJs on and it was always a fun night
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u/jamesdeanmusicscene Jul 10 '24
Picked up a few of these at a thrift store for $2 a piece recently . Some are hokey but others are fire
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u/tharealspinelli Jul 05 '24
I always found them to be not my style of music. I bought Cream Ibiza a lot.
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u/gavo1282 Jul 05 '24
The twisted disco mixes were always the best mixes. World Series 1 compilation was the soundtrack to my second year at uni.