Thunder - Speed Cross (Reissue)

Toto Torquati’s “Speed Cross,” released in 1980 under the name Thunder, sets epic octave basslines and a disco drum gallop beneath galactic pads and malfunctioning cascades of energy while kinetic guitar riffs support buzzing chords, laser light harmonies, and flamboyant talk box solos. On its original release, the track was backed by “The Game,” which cuts together pastoral prog and classic rock via shuffling beats, jangling acoustics, and funky flashes of clavinet before transitioning towards passages of charismatic vocal magic, wherein tight beats and thumping bass cruise down endless summer highways while blues pianos dance and guitars jangle in the sunshine. And now, in reissuing both tracks, Best Record Italy has gone one step further by inviting in dancefloor magicians Mystic Jungle and Whodamanny for a spaced out remix of “Speed Cross.” Acid-soaked basslines flow through dubwise delays and Hi-NRG chords flash like a heatwave mirage as disco beats crack beneath celestial synths, star-seeking funk licks, and clouds of oscillation…all before the duo drop a sinister guitar solo soaked in psychedelic fuzz.