Hello.
Any other 808 State fans out there? Some comments on each album to
get the conversational balls rolling:
[Newbuild] (1988)
Very dark acid-house, heavy on the 303 and 808, but the trademark 808
State sound is just about there. Side 1 takes a while to get going,
but Side 2 is one blistering track after another. An absolute bastard
to find (anyone know how many copies were pressed?), but worth having
a listen to.
[Quadrastate] (1989)
Excellent stuff. One of the freshest, most unique techno albums of
1989, totally blowing everything else out of the water. 808 State
weren't afraid to acknowledge their influences -- there's shades of
Derrick May, Herbie Hancock and Larry Heard mixed up with Mancunian
house. Hard to track down, but a few specialist stores in Manchester
may still have a copy or two. One of my favourite 808 State albums.
[90] (1989)
Essentially an extension of 'Quadrastate', but with a bit more spit
and polish. This is the album that got me into techno. Whereas the
previous two albums had a range of tracks that covered similar
territory, '90' showed just how versatile 808 State could be -- from
the wild, crashing noise of 'Donkey Doctor' to the sublime ambience
of 'Sunrise'. Quite simply, one of the best techno albums ever made.
If you haven't got it, what are you doing on this mailing list?
[Utd. State 90] (1990)
The American import version of '90', with the addition of a few
tracks (mostly Quadrastate remixes). If you can't find the UK version
anywhere, then make do with this version.
[The North at Its Heights] (1991)
Okay, so it's an MC Tunes album, but 808 State did 95% of the
production work. I was never really a big fan of MC Tunes himself,
but it's 808 State's trickery that makes this work. However, I
couldn't help but feel how much better the album would have sounded
without the rapping. There's too much beautiful music being drowned
out. If rapping isn't for you, don't get this album. But if you're an
808 State fan, then it's worth hearing.
[ex:el] (1991)
A curious album, which helped catapult 808 State beyond the dance
scene and earnt them the respect of 'proper' music critics (it was
voted BBC Radio 4's best album of the year, with the only other
nominations being classical). 'ex:el' feels a lot more 'grown-up'
than '90'. The variety of tracks on offer is very broad -- only
'Cubik' and 'Lambrusco Cowboy' sound similar. Bjork's contributions
added a certain touch of class, proving that 808 State had the
ability to incorporate a completely independent property into their
music and make it work. On the whole, a near faultless album, spoilt
only by the fact that the 'Leo Leo' track is the instrumental version
and not the excellent vocal version to be found on the 'In Yer Face'
single.
[Gorgeous] (1993)
A huge disappointment. That's not to say the album doesn't have its
moments, but on the whole everything sounds too clinical and
over-produced. By their own admission, 808 State felt they were
trying to please too many people and ended up pleasing hardly any.
Die-hard 808 State fans (like myself) were a bit worried, suspecting
that the departure of Martin Price (co-founder of the group, along
with Graham Massey and the long-since departed Gerald Simpson) might
have had something to do with the decline in standards.
I suspect most of the blame lies with ZTT Records, who aren't really
the sort of label ideally placed to give 808 State the full support
they deserve. 808 State have always been trend-setters and if you're
stuck with a label that moves at a snail-like pace when it comes to
releasing your material, things are bound to go wrong.
The fact that 808 State have stuck with ZTT would suggest that the
group are now content to develop *musically*, rather than continue to
play the fashion game. However, I can't help feel that 808 State
would be better off with someone like Warp or, if they want to stick
with a major, Island.
There are some great tracks on 'Gorgeous' -- particularly 'Europa',
'Nimbus' and 'Southern Cross' -- but on the whole there's too much
dithering and a little too much self-conscious hesitation.
[State to State] (1995)
A limited edition release, only available to member of the State to
State club. Not really a 'proper' album, but there's a nice mixture
of old and new tracks on offer. There's the original versions of some
of the 'Gorgeous' tracks, a couple of live tracks (including the
brilliant 'Repa Repo'), a left-over track from 'Quadrastate' plus a
couple of brand new tracks -- the most interesting being 'Yakuza'.
Well worth trying to find a copy of.
[Don Solaris] (1996)
And so we arrive at the latest album and possibly 808 State's best.
Thankfully, the demons of 'Gorgeous' have been laid to rest and the
group return to form in style. 'Don Solaris' combines the best
moments of '90' and 'ex:el', giving everything a contemporary spin.
It's hard to find fault with any of the tracks, although perhaps
'Balboa' could have been jazzed up a bit.
There's something here for everyone -- dark techno, mellow house,
drum & bass, breakbeat techno, ambient, even a guitar-led track. One
of the best albums of 1996, in any genre. It's such a shame that so
many people are going to overlook it, although what with the current
success of the Manic Street Preachers, the James Dean Bradfield
collaboration, 'Lopez' (due to be released as 808 State's next
single), could earn it more exposure.
808 State's next album can't come soon enough, although I suspect
we'll be waiting until summer 1998.
.+'''+. mark@sonance.demon.co.uk
M A R K
http://www.netlink.co.uk/users/sonance/
`+.,.+'
http://www.sonance.demon.co.uk/