FPU - Traxxdata

peter benisch creates cool, smooth electro as fpu that, though at times melancholic, uplifting and playful, is consistently lush and striking. the whole affair possesses a timeless quality that many other electro discs do not. there's a minimal kitsch or cheese factor here though benisch does reveal himself as a star trek fan when he professes his love for seven of nine in a song of the same name. those who enjoy solvent of suction records would appreciate benisch's more techno-oriented sounds. both are influenced by human league, erasure and depeche mode and expand upon these influences to create an elegant and dramatic melodies that are not weighed down or obscured with cliched effects and overly complex rhythms.

Frosty, 80s-tinged electro techno from Peter Benisch's FPU project and his TRAXXDATA album. But what makes this album stand out from others is the range that Benisch manages to squeeze from that era. SO while the opening track "Calabi Yau Space" floats somewhere in outer space, "You Don't Pay My Bills" crashes down to earth like Mir. The robot voice of "In the Future with Machines" is cold and processed -- but that's the point. The tongue-in-cheek "Seven of Nine" is a lovesick paean to the Star Trek: Voyager character, while "FPU Theme" brings to mind the classic track "LFO" by LFO. "Waiting for Snow" sounds like the lost theme to a mid-80s sci-fi show -- in other words great fun to listen to. Finally, "Endgame" wraps up the album with a slightly peppy track, punctuated by a vocal grunt and those long synth chords that we've grown to love. The 80s should come back every decade.

Peter Benisch's second album (and his first under the name FPU) on Canadian label Turbo is an enjoyable retro-flirt with the 80´s electro sound, with pure and heavy synth chords. It's a production with no samplings used in it, and was not supposed to be as serious as Benisch's previous album-productions.
Traxxdata is a more simple album - but still highly pleasant with a timeless Benisch sound - and it sure feels serious (and well-produced) enough.

As a matter of fact, it's a breath of fresh air in a market of shitty over-hyped "Electro Clash" releases. This album is so much more, with an identity of its own.

The easy going "Eastside Protection", an electro version of "Waiting For Snow" (my personal favourite), the cover of Jan Hammer's "Crockett’s Theme" (a hidden gem Benisch created several years ago, and the song that actually made this album come true after Turbo's owner Tiga finally heard it and wanted to release it) and the hard driven "In The Future With Machines" are just some of the splendid various electro material on this all in all magnificent album.