And now to some reviews of stuff I've bought recently:
Arcon 2 (Reinforced)-
Oh my. I do believe I have come across a truly killer drumnbass record
here. A nice blend of tech-steppish grooves and jump-up stuff, the drum
programming on this one is straight up ferocious. It's no secret that Leon
Marr (who is this guy anyway?) hangs with Mark and Dego, as the style is
similar to 4Hero stuff. There are some nice contrasts within the tracks
(what I look for in dnb), as underneath the hectic programming lies some
eerie and not cliche ambient atmospherics. There are even a few down tempo
and total ambient tracks thrown in for good measure. A great release for
the headphones as well as the club, this one will throw you for a loop in
that just when you though you 'heard it all' with techstep, here comes
Arcon 2. If you liked Boymerang, you'll love this, and if you thought
Boymerang was a little, for lack of a better word, underdeveloped, I think
you find this record to your liking. I would definitely get this release.
For some weird reason, they numbered the tracks 2-14, where did no. 1 go?
Dark Magus 'Night Watchmen' (Alphaphone)-
Mr. Richard H. Kirk spits out yet another record on his newer Alphaphone
label. Continuing where the last Sandoz record left off (This would
be 'God Bless The Conspircay'), RHK downplays his obsession with uptempo
aggressive tech-house in favor of more moody, thicker, 'tech-funk'. He's
still using the 1 and 2 bar loop layer after layer, but for some reason
that's why I really like his stuff, because for the most part, no one
nowadays is really doing simple sequencing like this (perhaps it is seen
as passe). The samples are a little more left of center, (like bits of
dialogue that are looped) which remind me of Cabaret Voltaire of old. This
record if a bit repititive (hey if you don't dig the repitition you
probably don't pay much attention to RHK anyway) has some nice quirks that
I can only describe as the Kirk sound. If you're a fan, buy buy buy, but I
also recommend this if you have been previously turned off by RHK's 4ttf
tech-house endeavors.
As One 'Planetary Folklore' (Mo Wax)
A couple of people have already given some good reviews of this release,
and for the most part, I agree. Kirk Degiorgio comes very close to
severing any ties he had with the word 'techno' with this release. A
unique hybrid album of electronics, jazz and soul, it's surprisingly mid
to uptempo. There are certainly no dnb tracks, but the drums do get funky
and pumping. Degiorgio also applies the cut up technique, taken from dnb,
to his drum loops, so that they sound almost 'live'. I find it interesting
that it seems there is a trend in drum progrmming aesthetic these days
that attempts to mimick live drums, like say Squarepusher, or perhaps the
new 4Hero EP, or maybe Steve Pickton's latest stuff, or Plantary Folklore.
I like it, because just when you have fallen into a groove, the artist
will throw out a burst of snares or cymbals that clearly remind you *this
is being electronically manipulated*. Drums however are not the only thing
going on in this record, there's a vocal track (by a *male* singer even!)
and what sound like real live instuments. If you are into jazz and are
looking for a new twist on the whole electronica saga, get this. My only
complaint: too short. Clocking in at just over 50minutes, by the times
you are really chillin' to this record, it ends. Oh well...
Hope that helps some of you-
peace
Nate