Way Out West (Way Out West album)


Way Out West is the eponymous debut studio album by English electronic music duo Way Out West. It was released on 1 September 1997 by the since defunct record label Deconstruction Records, and peaked at 42 in the UK Albums Chart that year. The album includes its four singles, "Ajare", "The Gift", "Domination", and "Blue".

Background

The album's release was promoted by its four singles: "Ajare", "The Gift", "Domination" and "Blue", all released on Deconstruction Records. "The Gift" remains the group's highest charted song on the UK Singles Chart to date, peaking at number #15. However, both "The Gift" and "Domination" peaked at number 2 on the UK Dance Chart. Despite its success, the album does not have record of charting outside of the UK.
Several samples from various music were used to create the album. On the topic of sampling, Wisternoff stated in an interview that "beforehand we... came from poor backgrounds where we had a sampler... So we *had* to sample to get the sounds we imagined of." Most notably, "Blue" loosely samples the melody of the theme from the film Withnail and I, "The Gift" samples Joanna Law's cover of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", and "Ajare" samples "" by Rose Royce.

Critical reception

Upon release, Way Out West was met with positive reviews from critics. John Bush from Allmusic summarised the album as "a varied, engaging debut". In a review of Way Out West's second studio album Intensify, Christian Hopwood from BBC Music commented that "it might lack the variety of the first album ", he also praised "King of the Funk", describing it as "excellent".

Track listing

Charts

Personnel

Way Out West
Sampled artists