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Reviews:
Haujobb - Matrix - 02-Jul-03 08:02 AM
This is an album of remixes of "Solutions for a Small Planet," and some of the remixes are quite excellent indeed. However, the most distinctive thing about this album is the second disk of audio loops and samples from "Solutions" provided for public use, without any copyright retained. This is something the Musicians Against the Copyrighting of Samples loved, and it also shows the fine work Haujobb put into sound construction.
Haujobb - Solutions For A Small Planet - 02-Jul-03 07:58 AM
This is definitely Haujobbs best album, and it marks a turning point in the bands musical style from a harsher and somewhat copied industrial noise to a more distinct IDM sound. The album was obviously influenced by Lassigue Bendthaus album "Render" in subject and style. Both albums are concept albums about computer technology and its effect on humanity. Render is set in the present, but Solutions is set about 20-50 years in the future, with its futuristic city cover. This would be an excellent sountrack for any William Gibson novel. Haujobb has done a masterful job of composition and the sound design is top-notch. As with any Haujobb release, this sound was quickly copied by other European industrial acts, but this is the unsurpassed original. Get it, its worth it.
Lassigue Bendthaus - Render - 02-Jul-03 07:46 AM
This is the soundtrack for the heady optimism and hopefulness of the dot-com age. Recorded while Uwe Schmidt was in Japan and punctuated with samples from Japanese TV, this album is an exploration of technology and our increasingly simulated and computer-mediated existence. For instance, the first song Fiber starts with "Fiber line, shine and light the globe, enlight, communicate, connect". Although many songs indicate a concern for what is lost with technologys progress ("Blur" is about isolation, "Alias" uses antialiasing as a metaphor for glossing over reality, "Render" talks about how simulation has replaced reality, "Otaku" is about Japans otaku subculture), the tone still seems hopeful. Excellent arrangements and sounds. I personally consider this one of Uwe Schmidts best works. Well worth it.
múm - Finally We Are No One - 25-Jun-03 07:49 AM
Hailing from Iceland, Múm has created a pretty distinct and magical sound on this record. Their genre has been described by some as "indietronica," mixing traditional instrumentation (this record has pianos, accordion, horn, and others) with analog and digital synthesis. Because of this, they have often been compared to other groups like Boards of Canada, Dntal, Ulrich Schnauss, as well as fellow Icelanders Sigur Ros. The increased use of traditional instruments and arrangements distinguish this album from their more conventionally IDM first offering "Yesterday was Dramatic, Today is Ok." I think it makes it a better album though, with more emotion and moments of eerie beauty. Worth listening to.
Incidentally, two of the tracks with swimming pool were recorded for use in a multimedia installation in Iceland and were originally played on speakers submerged into a swimming pool. This explains the lack of the warm analog bass tones present in other songs and the shimmering, effervescent quality. Anybody with a pool want to see how they sound?
Fibla - Landscopes - 25-Jun-03 07:32 AM
Fibla has been described in a few reviews as sounding like Autechre after an extended stay in the beaches of southern Spain, and Id have to agree. There still is the dissonance and general tweaking that you get with the best IDM releases, but Fibla also adds a genuine warmth through the use of pads and chiming string-like accents. The mood created is warm and somewhat wistful. Standout tracks are Tildeath, Adios, and Grimm. Worth a listen.
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