Bang the Party

• Genres: Electronica

Biography

One of the first British dance acts to get airplay on American dancefloors, Bang the Party was formed by Kid Batchelor and Keith Franklin. Batchelor had been playing rare-groove funk and soul with schoolmate Jazzie B (later of Soul II Soul) since the mid-'80s. He later hooked up with Franklin as Bang the Party to record several of the earliest British acid-house tracks: "Jacque's Theme" and "Release Your Body." Much respect was coming from America, and "Release Your Body" even earned a re-release on Derrick May's Transmat Records (with a Mayday Mix to boot). "Bang Bang You're Mine" was another early club classic that skirted the British charts, spawning the duo's only LP, 1990's Back to Prison. Though Bang the Party didn't last long, Batchelor continued to DJ at well-known venues, and Franklin later appeared (briefly) in KCC with the Advent's Colin McBean. ~ John Bush, Rovi