XDCopycat Review #-23.7i^2
by Mike Brown.
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Fuse
Train-Tracs
US CD5: Wax Trax!/TVT 8708-2
7:53 Train-Trac (Train Abuse)
13:43 Train-Trac (Kaboose)
6:12 Train-Trac (Drum-Trac 2)
8:10 Train-Trac (Bajack)
3:45 Train-Trac (The Day After [MV's Mix])
5:00 Confusion
5:37 Approach & Identify
I don't know if all these are on the 12".
I have to review this one because it's got part of my .signature in
the trac (ahem) track listing. {i} = the i-word.
Train Abuse: A "hard" mix, trying to be {i} with syncopation
and dynamics, but ending up being just a noisy, bubbly stew of the
same old distorted & reverbed 909 noises. Reminds me of 808 State's
"Firecracker" but without the innovation. The sparse occurences of a
few beeps, train noises, 4 chords and a barely-audible bassline
barely offset the artillery fire from the overdriven drum machine.
It sounds like he's trying to make quantity substitute for quality by
triggering every sound in the box and it's just 5 years too late.
Add some horns and you've got the Ohio State Marching Band.
Kaboose: Just as much 909-based percussion as in Train Abuse,
but this time low in the mix, with the 4 simple chords in the
foreground. The first half is fairly dancey, then more ambient
layers fade in and the percussion drifts out. Things get quieter and
spacier until the end.
Drum-Trac: Yikes! More of the same noises from Abuse, but this
time arranged in a more traditional layered mix. He plays with the
pitch on the ride cymbals to nice effect, and the hi-hats and claps
fade in, then everything drops out, then things come back in again,
with an added bassline (sort of...it's one note, with lots of
echoes...) This kind of hard trance is what Hawtin does best. Even
nicer is he knows not to drag it out too long. Thumbs up.
Bajack: WOW! This one is mixed by Mark Gage (Vapour Space).
High class, well produced trance. The 909 is low in the mix and
intensely delayed to the point of being a textural background to the
echoing 303 and comparatively dry 808 on top. Analog sweeps and
synthesized "ahh" tones add color. My only complaint is that in this
case, 8 minutes is too short!
The Day After: {i} ambience, hard to describe. A fat, wobbly
bass sound, those same 4 chords (this time from a digital box), no
kick drum but more (guess what!) 909 sounds in your ears... the
clicky noizes, mmm my favorite (cough). This is one of those {i}
tracks I don't understand. Perhaps someone more qualified to review
it should talk about it.
Confusion: A straightforward Hawtin trance ditty from 1991 that
slows down to half-speed in the opening minute, then speeds up again.
Nothing special, but a nice thing for those who missed it the first
time around.
Approach & Identify: A rougher, sparser 1990 bleep track built
LFO-style around a sample from "Logan's Run". If you ask me, this is
a lot more {i} than Black Dog, but you didn't ask me, did you? Great
stuff.
Summary: 7/10. A worthwhile Hawtin sampler with a fair amount of
innovation. A Vapour Space remix and a bleep cut from the grave
saves the disc from 909 overkill.
Mike J. Brown _ ___ ______________Approach and Identify
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