Various - The Kings Of Techno

Was really looking forward to this but was inevitably disapointed. Certainly not as good as the Kings of House comp by MAW.

I prefer the Laurent Garnier mix than Carl Craig's. In all fairness, I find that cd somewhat annoying. All the shouts out during the mixes etc really detract from the listening experience. Some might see them as personal touches, I see them as an annoyance.

It's a shame because the music on both cds' is very high and eclectic. Better than the average compilation but it could have been so much more.

This is an outstanding effort from 2 of the most important players who have shaped techno / house and dance music in general over the past 20 or so years. Both DJ's have clearly made an effort to create an identity to their mixes, as have been used in their recent mix CD's. Laurent starts opens up with "fly on the wall" brief recordings of conversation, and the set opens with blues and jazz, building to full Detroit techno, much in the style of his previous "Excess Luggage" mix compilation. Gone are the days when you would hear a full techno or house set from Laurent, his DJ sets moved well beyond this and he makes no apologies for the diversity of his track selections. You need to be open minded for this set, and in my opinion it works fantastic. This is his interpritation of the USA sound, and he's got the jazz element spot on, right back to the Motown sound. Carl Craig provides some excellent content from europe (and Japan with YMO), building from Italo disco records, french disco, slowly up to the 90's sounds, and back to cutting edge 80's. As with Laurent, he creates his own unique style much like his recent "Fabric" mix CD, with a running commentary for his tracks, and why he has chosen them. These early tracks are a nightmare to mix, evident as Carl kills the bass and talks over some mixes, but thats OK. Again, you really need an open mind for this mix, and he has done an outstanding job in digging out some obscure records. What is ironic and interesting about this mix is that if you ask any Detroit DJ about their influences during the birth of Detroit techno, a big chunk comes from european imports, mostly Italy and Germany in the late 70's and early 80's. But if you ask the european artists during the birth of the main dance scene in the mid-late 80's, their influence was definitely Chicago and Detroit. They have acheived something different and quirky, and i'd recommend it 100%.