Leon Mar - Tha Men Who Fell To Earth (Reinforced Records, 1996)
When Noel Ram was thinking of an alias for his releases on Reinforced he simply took his first and last names and reversed the letters: Leon Mar. He also went by Arcon 2 and was particularly productive in 1996 with four 12"s on the imprint, two under each name (plus a track on Above The Law). My favourite of these is the last, with the B-Side 'Tha Men Who Fell To Earth' really standing out.
The title comes from the science fiction novel The Man Who Fell To Earth by Walter Tevis, made into a film starring David Bowie in 1976. Given the backwards spelling of his name it's appropriate Leon Mar simply swapped an a and e to slightly alter it. He crafts a stellar tune that opens with a descending three note refrain from the heavens before serene synth pads, twinkling arpeggios and soulful "yeah" vocals enter, all topped off by the Think break. Two and half minutes in the track changes things up as the Amen break shatters the calm while noises and bleeps akin to an alien spacecraft add a sinister edge. But the three note refrain remains throughout the track, maintaining that soothing feeling along with the vocal sample. A top notch tune from a producer who deserves more recognition.
After a lengthy absence Noel Ram resurfaced a few years ago with new material on his own Arcon 2 Recordings while he has also put out two collections of productions made between 1995 and 2000 under the Leon Mar name. Volume 1 includes 'Tha Men Who Fell To Earth' along with an extended mix of the track and the A-Side of this 12", 'Running'. You can purchase it on Bandcamp.
Check out this mix from Djinn of 1994-1997 Jungle and DnB put together for Broken Audio back in 2013, 'Tha Men Who Fell To Earth' features as the penultimate track: