UK duo comprising DJs Chris ‘Cass’ Cutbush and Pete ‘Slide’ Martin, Cass And Slide came to prominence on the wave of a progressive house craze in the UK through 2000 and 2001, but in truth their style has proved more durable. The two met at the unlikely location of Flying Rhino Records, the psychedelic trance label where Cass was manager for two years. Slide’s ‘Confusional State’ was the icebreaker, a deep and groovy track that proved something of a landmark for the label. Within months of their meeting the two teamed up with Lee Burridge, forming Fire Recordings in May 2000. Their debut ‘Perception’ was initially signed to Additive, but on their own label ‘Opera’ generated rave reviews from the UK press in the summer of 2000. This cemented the respect they had already earned from superstar DJs Sasha, Dave Seaman and Danny Tenaglia. Fire became a well-respected house label and the duo released their album debut Burning The Candle At Both Ends early in 2002. It shows them to be more than progressive house masters with some effective down-tempo material, including an emotive cover of Terence Trent D’Arby’s ‘Sign Your Name’ and an improbable yet effective guest appearance from Jason Donovan. An appearance on BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix towards the end of 2001 brought more recognition with a widely varied set, and the first collection of their remixes showcased a tough, minimal take on house, majoring on groovy bass lines and deep, dark textures.