Hi all,
some quicky reviews of stuff I bought last week. Not all are new releases.
This is mixed idm and ambient content, so feel free to disregard things
depending on whichever list you're on :)
Autechre: Chiastic Slide & Envane
very good, but neither of them has blown me away yet. but I know it's way
too early to judge an ae record after only a couple listens. I'm not sure
whether they'll come close to tri repetae, though, one of my all-time fav
albums. One that DID blow me away, however, is:
Autechre: Anti EP
so glad I came across this brilliant 3-tracker from 1994 which I hadn't
heard of until I got blech2. Djarum is one epic track. Definitely my
favorite autechre EP.
Plaid EP (clear)
here's another older one. Also really glad I found this. 4 tracks, A1 and
B1 are good, A2 is simply beautiful and B2 sounds like it's straight from
Bytes.
µ-ziq: Urmur bile trax 1&2 (ASW)
this has been reviewed to quite some extent. Mike P on the jungle tip for
the most part, but still very much sounding like µ-ziq, and I love it. I
really enjoyed Das Ist ein Groovy... and Shaped to make... and I loved
Makesaracket, but another one of those funked out releases might have
become boring. Good to hear some µ-ziq again.
Beaumont Hannant: basic data manipulation (GPR)
Old one again, from '93. IMO, even better than Texturology, which is
already a great album. I wish I would've been an IDMer already in 1993...
this is timeless IDM.
Jacob's Optical Stairway: same (R&S)
This one I rented from a CD rental place and didn't even burn it on CDR.
Hell, I didn't even *tape* it. d&b on the jazzier side that could have come
out 1/2 years earlier. Very unimaginative, not to say dull.
Mind the Gap - ultimate breaks&beats vol 2 (Gap/Groove Attack)
Great comp from my hometown cologne. Best breaks-oriented compilation I've
seen in a long time, ranging from chilled slower breaks to the dark
no-U-turn-stylee: exactly the opposite of the weak d&b noodling of albums
like the above. Just two of the 11 great tracks make the purchase
worthwile: Fuckdub by Tosca (Dorfmeister/Huber) and the brilliant That was
no Martian by Airgoose - wow.
Red Snapper: Prince Blimey (Warp)
Very good. For the most part not as relaxed as Reeled and Skinned, but if
you liked that one (I love it), you'll also like this one since Red Snapper
haven't really changed their style at all but have kept up the quality. 12
cool tracks that I find great to listen to in the afternoon.
Bjork: Telegram
Disappointing. None of the remixes go anywhere, with the exception maybe of
the Dobie rmx of I miss you and the Deodato rmx of Isobel. Both are artists
I've never heard of. LFO remix is really lame.
Fila Brazillia: Black Market Gardening (Pork)
I love it. Beautiful album. Sorry, don't know what else to say. Get it get
it get it. The ultimate soundtrack for late breakfasts and rainy summer
nights.
I.F. 2 (Fax PS 08/56)
I couldn't believe my eyes when I stumbled across this at my fav record
store a-musik (word to fellow german listers: when in cologne, go there)
right in the middle of the fax section at regular new-release price. Now I
can't believe my ears. Dr. Atmo & Deep Space Network with 4 tracks of epic
proportions. If you like your fax a bit heavier on the beats and find this
CD (it's from 1994 though...), by all means get it. If you liked the
hypnotic beats of Fanger&Siebert, wait till you hear "intergalactic funk".
Oh wow. I can't stop listening to this.
Move D / Namlook: Exploring the Psychedelic landscape (Fax PK 08/121)
Best fax release since elektro, IMO. Quite some chunky beats with minimal
rhythms. It grooves along while staying in the background. Again, well
worth checking out for faxers on the idm tip.
Datacide: Flowerhead (Asphodel)
glad that asphodel rereleased this. After having heard Atom Heart playing
live the other day, this is quite different: very chilled, not as much
crazy drum programming, all in all quite lush.
that's all. Off to go windsurfing, talk to you in 3 weeks when I'll be back
just in time for autechre to come into town :)
cheers,
--tom