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Lamb - Lamb - 04-Oct-09 09:22 AM
Lou Rhodes has an appropriately husky voice for this drum & bass / trip-hop "song" crossover group. In theory Andy Barlows production, which on this album at least, took rather generic drum & bass rhythms and mashed them up as youd expect, should make this duo the ideal starting point for those of us that arent really into either of those genres because theyre normally so focussed on beats.

Sorry, doesnt quite work. Gorecki does have a somewhat dark, enticing lead vocal melody but with the overused trip-hop rhythm here it comes off far less inspired than the Global Communication remix.

And I really cant pick any further moments that arent disappointing. Lou sometimes pushes her croaking a little too far on God Bless, and the cliches apparent in their lyrics (Cotton Wool!) makes for a lesser and lesser experience. Zero ditches the drums for some soft violin and string plucking, giving it the impression of an introspective ballad. Its only "hook" seems to be Lou croaking "everythiiiiing" at times, marring the otherwise pleasant vibe.

Perhaps they went on to better things, as of yet Ive not heard newer Lamb albums. But one of the biggest peeves I have is that Lous voice tends to be rather solitary. Few harmonies, and when there are some theyre indistinct and dont really bring the vocals to the heights Id hope for. Closer seems utterly hookless in that regard. And was there any point in having a bonus remix of Cotton Wool?

Its not bad, I think Id rather sit through this than any selected Roni Size album (that "dancefloor-orientation" problem again). But it aint anything special! Drum & bass nuts will probably disagree but Im not one outside of Photek!

Toast3d - High Infinity - 08-Aug-09 02:16 PM
Many will be put off by the generic psy sounds on this album. Please, dont be.

Ill give Toast3D a point off for a silly name and their choice of sounds, but musically, theres much to like here.

Basslines tend on the generic side, but at least theyre rarely if ever "one-note full-on" lines. No, its the leads that are the great thing on High Infinity.

Efect Defect starts with a fairly predictable "unpredictable stabs and reverses" opening section, but then it starts to bring in melodies in distinct sections. Firstly a solid hook, then the next section is defined by a bright arpeggio, but this breaks and gives way to a some acidic leads - another good solid lead melody, not just an arp - this disappears for a bit, and after some more effects play, some more leads come in marked initially by some vertigo-inducing pitch bent notes. Some acid arps take their place, the drums disappear, then another squelchy acidic arp returns, followed by those rising and falling leads again.

Structure. Non-linearity. FUN, consistently interesting break-downs and break-ups.

I wonder if these guys have been listening to Safi Connection?

Memory Game is almost progressive in structure. And I mean "prog" as in rock. Dont expect a 7-minute build up, theres a cool pseudo-rock intro with some tasty guitar parts, which then gives way to the various trancy parts: lots of melodies here, and theyre modulated, messed up, and changed regularly. Love the way the leads gradually become wonky and out of tune during the outro, beats a "boom" or a fade-out.

Psy Evolution is another piece that alternates lead melodies, then arp-focussed sections, then some more leads - at times sounding like crazy synth solos as opposed to "sequenced" notes - it doesnt have quite an interesting structure as the title track or Memory Game, and its ending is a little "inconsequential", but the memorable psy leads (that is possible, believe it or not) ensure its another highlight.

There are some slight mis-steps, such as Midship, which takes a little too long to come out of its generic full-on intro, and move to some melodies. Even then these arent quite up to some of the other tracks. Im also not convinced by the semi-down-beat piece "Fly Away", with its simplistic, auto-tuned glow-stick vocals, and apparent lack of decent hooks or melodies. There is a section where the vocals are soloed, it seems, but theyre not particularly racuous and leave a sense of disappointment at the end of a slightly inconsistent but often satisfying album.

But of course, most psy listeners will put this album down for not following the "sound effects and gradual build for 7 minutes" template that 99% of psy releases conform to.

Shamen, The - 26-Jun-09 06:25 PM
I must be a glutton for punishment, comparing The Shamen to The Beatles. Oh yes, bring it on all ye Angry Internet Men (or what I prefer to call "wankers") with your elitist opinions. Well bring it on if you must! We are all dancing about architecture anyway.

The Shamen certainly never had the cultural impact of the fab four, hounded as they were at the time by the UK press for the infamous Ebeneezer Goode with THAT chorus and along with the general rave culture backlash, The Shamen never stood a chance. So lets forget that aspect and talk music. First, some elimination:

Kraftwerk were hugely influential, but not comparable. They stuck firmly to their stately, gothic electro-pop and rarely deviated. No diversity, and only the merest hints of dance genres.

The Orb may have been diverse, but only within their distinctly ambient sphere, despite bringing in elements of reggae, dub, techno, house and only much later on, pop. With mixed results.

The Prodigy were hardcore through and through. They explored many aspects of the genre, but rarely sought to bring a pop side to it, until their dodgy newer singles in the noughties. So not them either.

The Beloved, perhaps, but too short-lived. New Order? New Wave, rock and pop, but they were never really "techno". Bjork? Well there might be something there, but she is one individual.

No, it is The Shamen that took all these modern electronic genres - done before by others, just as rock and pop had been done by others before the Beatles - and married them consistently to pop. What is Prince Of Popocatapetl if not ambient pop? It only has two vocal lines, but it is still a pop hook in what is otherwise an ambient song. I Do switches between big-beat and techno as Colin and Victoria sing about Shamanising, to yet more glorious pop hooks. Human NRG is a pop song set to a breaksy/big-beat (in 1990!) type rhythm. Transamazonia and Destination Eschaton are their takes on trance, set to pop vocal hooks. Obviously their main strides were in techno and rave, but they really were diverse.

They have numerous outstanding instrumental achievements as well, as far back as the experimental techno (for the time) piece Evil Is Eden, its lilting, shuffled rhythm predating Schaffel by a decade! Steve Hillage lent support on two beautiful ambient gliss pieces, Scientas and Agua Azul, but crucially they were not pure ambient, they had very memorable little hooks, flute and guitar on Scientas, and Agua Azul awash with a billion synths.

And Hempton Manor? How did Colin Angus and Richard West manage to compose such utterly beautiful, truly unique and unmatched melodic techno, house, trance, drum & bass, breaks and ambient all on the same album? There were other groups in the 90s that would dare to be as diverse (FSOL come to mind), but this much? And nowadays? Nope, it is all niches and subgenres, all the way.

I think it is also worth mentioning the massive "culture" of remixes that came about around these guys. Every single is worth picking up, because many producers brought their own talents to Shamen songs and created some superb alternate versions. Including names such as Richie Hawtin, Moby, LTJ Bukem, Frank De Wulf, even Graham Massey! I do not believe any band had been so remixed before, on such a huge scale.

So yeah, The Beatles for rock and pop, The Shamen for techno, house, electronica and pop. Not too hard to understand that this is a comparison worth making. What matters is that, musically, they had a distinct identity but did not pigeonhole themselves to one genre. They were pop, but they were many modern dance genres as well, and whenever they WANTED to be.

And that takes talent. So, no wonder dance music sucks now, eh?

Various - Across Uneven Terrain - 26-Jun-09 09:29 AM
I dont have this comp, but I DO have the remix of Torsten Pröfrocks "9" by Autechre, and I believe this is the only physical release on which this track has appeared.

A shame, because its one of Autechres best. A 2/2 kick rhythm is unusual in techno, let alone the abrasive industrial textures Ae used here. For nearly 10 minutes this thing steamrolls along with punishing relentlessness, powerful drums set to glitchy machine rhythms hypnotically pounding along. Of course this being Autechre, the initial repetition is a ploy - this piece changes up a lot during the 10 minutes, and stays utterly compelling throughout.

A shame Ae dont make more tunes like this, and insist on sticking with their uber-cerebral IDM/glitch nonsense nowadays. Their remix of 9, and the Confield bonus track Mcr Quarter, are rare pieces of powerful industrial techno in their catalogue. Recommended for fans of Reeko, British Murder Boys and Grovskopa.

Monolake - Alaska Melting - 26-Jun-09 08:42 AM
Fantastic. This is truly the best thing I have heard from Robert Henke in a very long time. For some reason he has turned all the rotaries in Ableton up to 11 for this one.

Alaska is an incessant, driving dub techno piece. The sort of thing I wish DC *cough* would try and make. With a beefed up tempo, glitched dub stabs, rolling clattering hi-hats, and big FM bass notes, the tune ends up a winner. I would even dare to say its a little short.

Melting is a little more atmospheric, its main draw is the washed-out pads that ebb gently in the background. Some dark, minor chords, lending a somewhat menacing atmosphere, behind the clicks and clacks of the hi-hats. It does not really have a hook like Alaska, but I will take it anyway, because the relentless 4/4 rhythm makes this a rare "atmospheric dark techno" treat that I have not encountered too often. Reeko explored similar territory on The Penitence, so this is welcome.

Recommended to any techno listener: even if you are not a fan, do not worry, this is not similar to the usual Monolake material.

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