I find both Speedy J and Mr. Paradinas to be somewhere
between mediocre and very good as far as the music
they produce. The original Slag Boom Van Loon album
reflects both of them near their best, and
compimenting each other quite well. It has magical
moments aplenty, and I think it's worthy at least one
listen by pretty much anybody.
That having been said, the remix album was rather a
disappointment for me. It shouldn't be, since Planet
Mu has in general gone a few places lately that I'm
just not interested in following. This is nothing
against Mr. P, just a reflection of changing tastes,
etc. Regardless, I just feel that the original Slag
Boom Van Loon was very much an excellent collaboration
album that did not need remixing, or if it did,
deserved very special care in the process. It
deserved remixes that were somehow close to the
original. I was hoping for something akin to Four
Tet's remix of Aphex's SAW II on the WARP10+3 Remixes
compilation - a remix that takes the spirit of the
original and breathes new life into it, making
something just as magical as the original.
Almost all of the remixes on So Soon do nothing for
me. The BoC mix is nice, but something feels forced
about it. The Mu-Ziq mix was pleasantly surprising,
compared with what I was expecting, but not engaging.
Leafcutter John created an inventive and accessible
track that nevertheless leaves me unsatisfied, and
Tipper's mix, though the most "IDM" of them all, left
me all the more bored for it.
Horse Opera should be banned from making music, Four
Tet can't help but make a good track, although this
one is OK to ignore - get his new album instead. Pole
is being Pole, Matmos are being an uninspired Matmos,
Coil confuses me and ruins what was the shining gem of
the original album, and BoC thankfully close with a
reprise that I hope was done originally by them and
not "constructed" by someone at Planet Mu.
At any rate, I hate to say this, but if you want to
make the most of your time on Planet Earth, get the
MP3s of this one if you absolutely have to hear BoC or
whichever is your favorite artist on it, but don't buy
the thing. Get the original album, or get Four Tet's
new album "Pause", or wait for new BoC, but don't
worry that you're missing anything amazing on "So
Soon" because you're not.
-Adam
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