(An HTML version of this review with sound samples can be found at:
http://hyperreal.com/music/reviews/davis/flux.planet/flux1.html,
or link from pHlow.toonz on my home page)
fLUX: Planet Genius
136 Dadua
120 Bliss In Circles
127 Flow
110 Tribe 251
118 Never Going Home
121 King Creole
121 Secret of 6 Dimensions
121 Avalon
Planet Genius is reportedly the work of one Frank Genius, and is
supposedly chapter 1 in a four volume anthology. Frank, (dadua@aol.com)
and periodic perpetrator of the IDM X-Files, has various historical and
sundry connections to random elements of "the scene", and what he has
done with Planet Genius is to weave many of these elements into a fluid
tapestry of his experiences. Best, although still very inadequately,
described as ambient trance, this is cool, immediately listenable stuff:
creatively surprising without being scary, making good use of African
polyrhythms and a variety of neat samples. A good backdrop for the
dancefloor, chill room or barcalounger, which traverses a fair amount of
ground in 8 tracks.
Dadua opens with a flapper era sample that reinforces the fact that
"dadua" is pronounced "da-doo-wop", immediately followed by a
refriegerated beat and agressive horn and sax section build. The
counter melody is quirky, and builds and folds over upon itself, forever
keeping the track off balance. The track is essentially "duelling
build-ups", be it horns, trance pulsing, or processed "dadua" samples.
Dadua never gets "there", but the foreplay's a good bit of fun.
The sounds of "Bliss In Circles" bear little resemblance to it's title;
this is a very eerie and schizophrenic number, driven by an incessant
plink-plonk beat and a ghost-like falsetto opera sample. Gradual
tinkering with the dissonant innards provides the aural diary of a
broken machine in the hands of madman, all for your listening enjoyment.
Inerestingly annoying, but doesn't really go very far in the eight
minutes it occupies.
Flow is a cool tribal thumper, with interleaved sounds and rhythms
multiplexed dense enough to maximize the use of your personal bandwidth.
A funky snake charmer with attitude, a recurring siren-style rewind
(that will have you checkin the rear view if you listen in your car),
and a bubbly trancey build trade off against the campfire-lit drum
circle throughout this piece until the ceremony ends abruptly.
Tribe 251 is , as the name suggests, another cybertribe anthem, the
rallying cry of Hermetic Lodge 251. Punchy bass and some back of the
neck drum trilling lay the foundation for a dense collage of tribal
chanting and train station clangoring, and a simplistic squirty refrain
breaks up the mixture. I like this one because it's self-propelled,
with a funky feeling of positivity, and you have to listen closely to
sort out all the different layers in the mix.
Never Going Home opens with a cheesed out Technotronic housey intro that
turned me off cold (for all of about 16 seconds.) Then the fun begins
as the playful interchange between instruments handmade from gourds,
acid sweeps, house diva samples, frenetic bongoconga circles, and that
lovable faux acid house intro backdrop make this one a dancefloor mover.
A "Look At Me Now" sample is used as an intermission break, but then
gets hopelessly thumbdragged as the track winds down.
King Creole sounds as if the african flavored rhythm stepper could have
been lifted from a "Bush Of Ghosts / Fear Of Music" Eno / Byrne
collaboration, but something tells me Mssr. Genius did it all by his
lonesome. Nice steel drumming provides the wankel rotary engine
powertrain, punctuated by a staccoto cornet blast sample on the down of
each measure and the continual looping of the stuttering santeria ritual
sample is the track's namesake. Although not progressing tremendously
throughout, it holds your ears to the stacks and your jumping feet
within the dance circle for the duration.
30 seconds into the next number, and you learn the real "Secret Of 6
Dimensions". Alfred Hitchcock thriller style vibes and marimbas tip toe
you through the jungle, beneath full moon skies, toward the scene of the
investigation. It's another of those tribal hoe downs, and the natives
are restless tonight. Lord knows how they convinced those 2 guys with
tenor saxes and that concerto violinist to show. Evil spirits being
driven out tonight, mon, so watch your back.
The closer, Avalon, is a cool dance floor bumper with syruppy sweet
female vocals draped over the do-the-happy-shuffle rhythm section like a
lace tarpaulin blowin' in a rhythmic wind. The soulful vocalist duets
with an synth oboe pad and the result is quite satisfactory. I love the
sound of machines when they smile; this one smiles enough and has enough
tuggin' diva pull to be cross-overable, while not compromising its
creative integrity.
Planet Genius played well from the first rotation, and it continues to
hang pretty tough after about 10 compete listens. My only real
criticism is that I could do with more variety and progression both
within tracks and between tracks. At no point are you bored, but the
recipe is usually so thick, that during some extended segments you may
find yourself asking ala Phil Glass "am I missing a progression here?"
Neverless, Frank does well at mixing a variety of elements into a unique
and engaging gumbo. Buy if if you can find it.
all rights reserved, all wrongs reversed. 1995
Jeff Davis <pHlow> ____--~~~~~~vvvv~~~~ oooooo 812.831.7846
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