This (along with Holy Ghost Inc's 'A Walk on Air') is probably my favorite deep house record of all time. Right as the sun is about to rise, put this record on and the experience will turn into a beautiful memory right before your very eyes... deep synths, a vocal compelling you to "put your hand in my flame" that manages to be alluring without being cheesy -- it's a perfect way to end the night.

This was one of those records that music-journalist types were complaining about back during the time it was released: disposable techno that consisted of little more than samples thrown on top of looped, sped-up breakbeats with production quality that wasn't exactly excellent (I swear some of these Production House records must've been using an 8-bit Ensoniq Mirage to sample things).

So, of course, with the benefit of hindsight, that's what makes records like this so absolutely charming. There's no arty "minimal" aesthetic at work here, oh no... and the time could not have been any other than 1991-1992: a nice fat 202 bassline, a breakbeat, robot voices screaming "Exterminate!", and then a huge "Strings of Life" sample in the middle of it with an eerie female vocal on top.

Perhaps you had to be there, but to hear this sort of thing when it came out: it still sends chills down my spine. Even with the entire crowd on Doves I'm still surprised these sort of records did anything but confuse people.

This record is an absolute classic. I've never met anyone else who's actually heard it, but after you hear it it's one of those things that you just want to share with everyone you own.

Set the stage first. Light some incense, pop a Quaalude or two, and get the party started with a little Christopher Cross or Captain & Tenille. Then, just when you're starting to "feel the mood", sneak this piece of wax in. Take a hit of amyl nitrate. Let it soak in.

This is one of those things that defies parody. It simply must be heard to be believed. It also goes well with imagery from "Zardoz" or "Logan's Run."

Back before listening stations were the norm, we had to buy things based on the recommendations of others. Buoyed by Goldie's "Timeless" double disc, I thought drum and bass was the future and could do no wrong. (Don't listen to that hipster record store clerk: he doesn't necessarily share your taste.) What a mistake this purchase was. Whereas "Timeless" was a lush synthesis of jazz and techno that took electronic music in a new direction, this disc seemed to be harbinger of drum and bass to come: lame rapping, simplistic tech-step beats, and the overall feeling that this was just a bunch of mediocre singles thrown together instead of a cogent album. The only track I really enjoyed was "Digital", but even that one ain't no "Sea of Tears."

Too bad. I bought this back when I had a lot less disposable income. It was downright painful to take it back to the record store the very next week and get about 1/10 of the price I'd paid for it as a trade-in. I'm wondering, how well has this aged to those who were wowed by it when it came out?

This is an excellent mix CD, and one of the few that has survived numerous purges in my CD collection over the last few years. Instead of just bangin' out the latest batch of disposable "traxx", Adam digs deep into his influences and creates a memorable piece of art. This summons up a time when there weren't so many boundaries in electronic music: is this house? Techno? Industrial? Electro? Well, yes to all of them, and you can tell it's mixed with turntables, not ProTools!

Not every track on here is a winner (personally, I think "Kultes Klares" is an awful piece of cheezy electroclash) but overall, there's just something about it that works.

Back in 1994 I was able to order this "Beyond Ultra Rare" (per Under One Sky 'zine description) record from Gramaphone Records in Chicago!

I got it in the mail and - you guessed it - it sounded like (literally) someone had taken sandpaper and rubbed both sides for a few minutes. Completely unplayable. But at any rate, this was a classic track, one that I used to play out at every college house party back then. "Computer Madness" is a very nice spooky acidic techno track - great for long segueways - "Born to Freak" is a nice little 303 number.