I thought I posted this a while back but I never received an IDM Cc:d copy
so I uh, guess not. Apologies if I screwed up and you've got this twice...
--
Reviewed:
B12 : Time Tourist (Warp)
Kenny Larkin : Loop 2 (R&S)
Bochum Welt : Les Dances D'Ete (Kromode)
Red Snapper : Mooking (Warp)
Kinesthesia : Volume 2 (Rephlex)
Teep : Sewer Sounds 60 mixtape (-)
Stephen Brown : A Function of Aberration (Djax-Up-Beats)
Freeform : Free EP (Skam)
Various artists : 1-7 (Chain Reaction)
Round Two : New Day (Main Street)
Drexciya : Aquatic Invasion (Underground Resistance)
Psyche : Crackdown (Transmat)
2000 And One : Skunk Ice (100% Pure)
Planet Gong : Phases (Djax-Up-Beats)
B12 : Time Tourist (Warp)
Ah - the British take on techno. Theres something identifiably separate
between Detroit and UK techno. The warmth and emotion that usually oozes
from the jacked up grooves of the big D is present in the UK sound but
for some reason, its chilled down, well polished and usually with the
rawness removed. This is far from a bad thing - any different
interpretations on a sound are always welcome. Prime examples are the
super smooth glides of Stasis' _Inspiration_ LP, Kirk Degiorgios dry
beats, the gliding lushness of Luke Slaters 7th Plain, and of course B12.
_Electro-Soma_ typified that chilled UK approach and whilst it tended
to veer to a similarity between the tracks, it illustrated the thinking
behind the "intelligent listening music" ideal. For the most part, _Time
Tourist_ is a continuation of this sound - smooth chords slowly move into
orbit around subtle building rhythms, all linked together through dreamy
carefully rendered reverb. As a result, B12 seem to have built slightly
on the richer sound hinted at on _The Silicon Garden_ (B12s contribution
to the third Likemind 12", available on this LP in a shorter remixed
form). However, line the tracks up against _Electro-Soma_ and it's
apparent that there's been no real evolutionary 'next step' - the B12
sound is still as precise and as controlled as it ever was. Maybe this
is important, maybe it isn't - it would have been interesting to hear
the sound developed somehow but it's one which works. Listen
to the floating warmth of _Gimp_ (and the attention grabbing effects
tweaking that goes with it), the Derrick May-esq _Cymetry_ (complete
with tribute paying reversed 909 drums) and the deep Autechran moods of
_VOID/Comm_ for examples. Whilst lacking a sense of immediacy, all are
beautifully enveloping tracks and make up for the similarity of some of
the later pieces. This LP represents not a new milestone in B12s sound
then, but rather an addition to what already exists. Like _Electro-Soma_,
_Time Tourist_ isn't the sort of LP you might listen to all the time,
but when you feel in the need of some laid-back, uncomplicated techno,
you don't really get much better.
Kenny Larkin : Loop 2 (R&S)
Luke Slater and drum'n'bass guy of the moment Alex Reece are provided
with the remix honours here. Reece turns out an engaging, if slightly
overlight rework, (with little trace of the original) and Slater houses
it up with abrasive shuffling beats, keeping the cascading strings from
the original. Nothing tops the simple but fluid tones of the Kenny's
original mix though, which is also present here - definitely
the best track on this 12". The previously unreleased _Life Goes On_
completes the 12" - an abstract probe into detached chords and scratchy
drum machine toms. A diverse and enjoyable 12".
Bochum Welt : Les Dances D'Ete (Kromode)
For me, Gianluigi Di Costanza is a composite of all my favourite
IDM/techno artists - like a clinical Drexciya, a mature Richard James
(now theres a thought :) and a more minimal Speedy J, all meshed together
with the emotion of Detroit, inverted and passed through a super-cooled
European filter. Tracks on this 12" like _La Nuit_ and _La Pensee_ are
emotional yet surgical and as far removed from the Detroit warmth and
emotion as is possible. And despite this vague feeling of familiarity,
each beautifully produced track stands on its own with chrome chords and
machinic 808 beats - something fantastic is at work here. The _Scharlach
Eingang_ 12" on Rephlex was one of my 12"s of 1995, and this 12" matches
that supreme green four-tracker, despite its slight shift into more
ambient areas. Bochum Welt is one of my biggest hopes for 1996 - lets
hope he delivers.
Red Snapper : Mooking (Warp)
Uh, its 'jaaaazz' maaan. Red Snapper go in for live jazz loops and
occasional dub echos. There are some neat trip-hop beats on _Son of
Mook_ and some chase-scene-tastic double bass on the brilliantly titled
_Get Some Sleep Tiger_. Not really my scene, maaaan but it's all
bouncey and enjoyable, if a slightly weird choice for Warp. Remix duties
come courtesy of Depth Charge with a 'no suprise there then' trip-hoppy
work-out and from the Plaid boys who drop their IDM sensibilities
in favour of rolling snares and freeform breaks - they also have the
sense to retain the bassline from _Get Some Sleep Tiger_. Gotta love it.
Kinesthesia : Volume 2 (Rephlex)
As with _Volume 1_, Chris Jeffs turns in a four-tracker with two
journeys into Caustic Window type madness and two listenable melodious
techno numbers. Stand-out track is easily the second one (sorry, no
track titles as it's a promo) with it's aching far-off synth lead and
crunching static beats - probably one of Chris Jeffs best tracks and
mildly similar to Bochum Welt material. The two mad beat tracks are noisy
fuckers and provide instant gratification for the first few minutes of
clangs but suffer from the problem of under-development and over-length.
Still, no-one attacks those trademark Rephlexian crushing beats like Chris
Jeffs (and Richard James of course) and so if you're in the mood, they
can't be beaten. The final track harks back to early 90's UK techno with
it's uncomplicated beats and chiming square-wave bassline. Varied and
pretty good then if, like _Volume 1_, lacking slightly in that 'spark'
thats present in RDJs harder outings.
Teep : Sewer Sounds 60 mixtape (-)
A prime-time mixtape from that polyrhythmic Parillo guy. Toxic techno
ooze on one side and bubbling electro effluent on the other, allowing
you to pick and mix your toxins. Dropping the vinyl only track from
_SAW2_ inbetween two electro jams is genius, although I can't help
thinking that a batch of Drexciyan sewage would have seeped in nicely.
Aquatic goo -> aran@mit.edu
Stephen Brown : A Function of Aberration (Djax-Up-Beats)
A double debut pack of Detroit grooves from a new figure from Scotland.
Everything is present and correct - the strings, the shuffling beats
and a preference for tweaked sounds. At times the tracks can veer towards
sketchiness but for the most part they're enjoyable and fluffy - think
of Morgan Geists material. Brown likes to tweak his beats and the Advent
type broodiness of _Gasmask_ snuggles up beautifully to the tempo-
shifting funk of _Status Byte Part 1_. Although the beats sometimes skip
in and out of a track, theres enough food here for a hungry DJ and there
are more than enough moods for the casual listener - _Endless_ is
particularly good. I wanna hear more from this guy.
Freeform : Free EP (Skam)
Seven tracks of sub-Autechran deep-beat trickery. And really thats your
lot. It's obvious that Simon Pyke has worked hard at these tracks but
the honed focus of Autechre just isn't present here - on tracks such as
_Fane_ and _Rail_, the programming is precise but the tracks themselves
come across as just collections of like-sounding clicky rhythms. Two
tracks introduce other elements and it's here that Pyke's talent is
hinted at - the melancholic melody of _Siamese Telebox_ moves the focus
away from the anal synth-drum sounds to an emotional if slightly under-
developed conclusion and the soothing glide of _The Brink_s chords is
comforting and intelligent. The possibilities are in place - hopefully
Pyke can develop more fully in his later releases.
Various artists : 1-7 (Chain Reaction)
Various artists they might be, but they're all pushing the same sound.
The Basic Channel people are at it again and this 7 track 12" of
corroded clangs and filtered funk is enticingly sparse. The tracks veer
from warm mis-timed ambience to cooler, 4/4 fueled grooves. It's the
same as it ever was, but the rhythmic mechanics and annihilated clangs
are still strange but welcoming and enforce the fact that whilst many use
the BC sound, no-one does it better.
Round Two : New Day (Main Street)
Warm, moody house from Maurizio with vocals (yep, you read right) and
the two almost garage vocal edits are very good indeed. The Basic
Channel touches are subtle - the repeating 909 patterns and the occasional
dysfunctional stab push the track along beautifully, rather than
intrude. And for ardent lo-fi BC junkies, theres a Maurizio dub on the
flip. Very good stuff - 'intelligent house' anyone? Don't let this one
pass you by because of any 'no vocals in techno' hangup - the
melancholic aspect of the edits is strangley beautiful and compelling.
Drexciya : Aquatic Invasion (Underground Resistance)
Drexciya can do no wrong. Filty, harsh electro beatz on _The Countdown
Has Begun_, sparse but oh-so-competent tweakery on _Wavejumper_ and
an emotional, uplifting melody-chord combo on _Sighting In the Abyss_
which brings me up in gorgeous goosebumps every single time. Nothing
comes close.
Psyche : Crackdown (Transmat)
Gotta love those Transmat Classic repressings - the chance to own this
early four-tracker 12" from Carl Craig is just too good to turn down.
The tracks on here are super-sleek techno clasics - the racing beats and
chords of _Crackdown_ link well with the shuffling warmth of
_Andromeda_. You also get a stretched, flanging Mayday remix of
_Neurotic Behaviour_ which takes the epic ambient original and hammers
it to death with a 909. Not for the faint-hearted - full credit to
Derrick May for mercilessly gunning down the original to brilliant
effect.
2000 And One : Skunk Ice (100% Pure)
Intelligent, concentrated IDM from this bargain-bin find. _Skunk Ice_ is
a twisting journey through cool metallic clangs and pristine synth
patches. _Skunk Eyes_ however scoops up a bundle of lo-fi breaks and
scatters them over the previous tracks' carefully planned moods.
Blended chords crash up against a cliff of hammering snares in
_Faceless Mass_ but it is the last track _Korma_ which has the best mix
of moods, rhythmic trickery and a growling synth bassline. A good varied
12" from the Lowlands - there's no stand-out epic track, just a
collection of four tracks that work the IDM periphery beautifully.
Planet Gong : Phases (Djax-Up-Beats)
Early Djax beat malarky from 2000 And One activist Dylan Hermelijn.
Theres some gripping cone-busting acid on _Oriental Program_,
malfunctioning Detroit analogue tweakery on _Lunar 326_ and a
commonplace but enjoyable piano house groove courtesy of _My Heart,
My Soul_. Bizarrely for Djax, there are also some
beatless ambient pieces and they are damn good - they don't really work
as pure ambience because they're just so damn intrusive - the squealing
filtered strings of _Quink_ are beautiful and original but just watch
your graphic vu-meters peak. Nasty.
|| [CiM]
|| s.walley@uea.ac.uk
||
http://www.sys.uea.ac.uk/~u9323899/