The Gloucestershire group’s debut single “Unbelievable” was meant as a scene-setter. It ended up a Billboard No. 1, reshaped by Rick Rubin’s hand.
In the summer of 1991, a slice of British indie-dance noise landed at the top of the Billboard Hot 100. EMF’s “Unbelievable” wasn’t supposed to do that. The band had formed only a year before in Cinderford, a small town in the Forest of Dean. They borrowed their name from a New Order fan club — Epsom Mad Funkers — and built their sound on samples, a big guitar riff, and a lot of attitude.
When they put “Unbelievable” out as a debut single, the plan was modest. Set the scene for an album. See what stuck. Instead, the track took off. American radio grabbed it. Rick Rubin stepped in to remix the song, sharpening the low end and giving it a harder punch for US audiences. By July, it was number one, holding the spot for two weeks. A group of friends from the Forest of Dean had pulled off something genuinely strange: an accidental crossover hit just as grunge was starting to rearrange the furniture.
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