October 1999It's that time, those of you attending school should be hitting the books. When you find time for a little leisure I know you are all either letting loose in the clubs or buying your favorite underground music from your local club shops. You shouldn't tie up your computer or phone lines waiting for those music downloads. Here are a few albums that will help you concentrate. You can set your CD player on replay and they will all stay "poppin' fresh." TONY THORPE, Language Label boss, compiles ELECTRIC KINGDOM: EPISODE ONE for LA's Cowboy Spliff Records. Thorpe has gathered the best from the "new skool breaks" larder. These selections cover the darker side with "twisted funk, dark breaks, electro, bass and beats" that offer the quality of production that one usually finds on the finer drum & bass releases. RENNIE PILGREM (Thursday Club) leads off with "Someplace Funky" followed by T-POWER's complex "Inter State." T-Power's strength has previously been with his drum & bass releases but the "power" of his upfront breakbeat offerings can not be denied. BUCKFUNK 3000 "The Breaks" takes off where Aphex Twin's "Windowlicker" left off, urban perverts. FREQ NASTY's "Underglass" is another prime example of how he continues to define innovative breakbeat. SONGS OF MECHA "Rocweiller" is an experiment into the furthest depths of bass, a crunchy speaker-blower. The Tipper mix of "Latitude by Observation" by DIASKAEUST is a classic not to be missed. THOMAS KROME's "Electro Bitch" is a bass-driven, sci-fi-cinematic epic. Other notable tracks are by NUDGE, ELEKTRONIK OUTBOADING CAST, SYNAPS, SIMULANT AND BOLZ BOLZ. U-ZIQ (aka Mike Paradinas) "Royal Astronomy" on Astralwerks once again reflects this artist's astounding rate of growth. It seems as though each of his albums creates a new sub-genre. "Royal Astronomy" does contain much of what his fans have come to expect: innovative programming, abstract drum & bass with cutting edge beats, and experimental, mind-bending passages. But this new outing finds Mr. Paradinas on a very melodic, orchestrated journey. At times it almost seems as if Anne Dudley (Art of Noise) has joined forces with this great fusion-master. "Goodbye, Goodbye" and "The Fear" have vocals by Kazumi that present an extremely accessible alternative. "The Fear" is the first single and it will certainly present U-Ziq in a new light. Initially, the experienced U-Ziq aficionado may want to dismiss some portions as being too poppy, but when you delve into the album as a whole you realize that this is his most adventuresome collection to date. Paradinas has finally gained the confidence to allow his already fertile imagination the unbridled freedom to create, including what may be seen as "poppy." Almost all the pieces incorporate to some degree or are constructed around The Icelandic Octet. Ah, nothing like a cello to run a bassline up the back of your neck. A fine companion piece for U-Ziq is UNKNOWNWERKS VOLUME 01, a various artists album also on Astralwerks. This is a new series solely devoted to new electronic American artists; if Volume 1 is any indication there should be a shelf full in the very near future. The label wants to stress the point that this is not merely a compilation because all the material and most of the artists are previously unreleased. The artist and locations read like a tour of the USA, BIONIC from San Francisco "Ultra Blue," BEAT PHARMACY from Queens "The Next Big Chill," METRODUB from Miami "Cut Up Music," LE PIMP from LA "King of the Bad Groove," CENTRAL from Bloomington, WIDE from NYC, ATNARKO BEAR from Orlando, HEX from New Orleans, SHIVERHEAD from Milwaukee, DJ DONOVAN from Phoenix, and even Costa Mesa is covered by SIP. All of the artists here were sown from the fertile D.I.Y. Fields from across the nation. Their inspirations are often apparent, but that never detracts from their fine efforts. The majority of the releases here are in some way breakbeat-based with various amounts of ingenious glue holding them together. With the high level of competence revealed here it may go without saying that we will be hearing more from all involved. Astralwerks has developed a website (www.unknownwerks.com) for all interested to become more involved with the released artists and to encourage more "bedroom" musicians to come out of the closet, even if that's where they keep their 909. DEEP RED (aka Mikael Johnston and Orpheos Dejournette of Mephisto Odyssey, joined by Barrie Eves) bring us "Flow," their first release on the new Warner Brothers imprint Primal Breakz. The "Original Mix" reflects the essence of what Mephisto assisted in developing as the "west coast sound" of the '90s. If you were one of the lucky ones who got their hands on the Deep Red mixes of "So What!" by Jane's Addiction you will fully know what to expect with "Flow." Their trademark "sinister bass-lines" are augmented by "tribal chants," conga-permeated breaks, ever-present distorted guitars and "twisted synth stabs." The flip-side sports a slamming DJ DAN mix that has been one of his secret weapons (as he likes to call them) on dubplate through most of the summer. Dan is one of those to whom "remix" means deconstruction and that he does. "Flow" is stripped down by DJ Dan to the very basics of the track; he then pumps in some wicked four to the floor action that propels this track with a building tease until the hypnotic pounding climax -- essential. DJ BLACKSTONE unveils "The Flute Song" on Imperial Dub Recordings. I know Blackstones' passion for the progressive, but this release will undoubtably set a path he must follow up on. The production is deep and lush with a firm and chunky bassline. Bill Fiege's flute work begins light and jazzy then builds powerfully and never falters next to Blackstone's driven pulse. This is the rare jazz-based instrumental that could be placed near peak in anyone's set. The flip is by SOULFORCE "Custard" and is a pleasing complement to "Flow," albeit a bit brooding and mysterious. A no-nonsense dose of live drumming and deep bass keeps this one on track. A last offering from San Francisco is DJ CHEB I SABBAH "The Shri Durga Remixes" on Six Degrees Records. This is 180û from the previous two artists -- DJ Cheb i Sabbah has been a local world beat DJ for quite a number of years and these four tracks were culled from his debut release on 1002 Nights/Six Degrees "Shri Durga." All are stunning examples of the fusion of ancient middle east meets the modern west. "Kese Kese" gets the treatment from TRANSGLOBAL UNDERGROUND and BALLY SAGOO -- both versions are excellent. Transglobal Underground treat the piece delicately seeming only to heighten some phat trip hop beats and accent the occassional keyboard acid riff. Bally Sagoo gives us a full on ethno-club mix, a little more the four by four. Both keep in all the exquisite sitar and plethora of eastern percussion. STATE OF BENGAL's take on album title track "Shri Durga" is what one would have to call "tabla and bass," a pleasant diversion for anyone yearning for something different in their drum and bass set. DJ Cheb i Sabbah presents an alternative version of "Ganga Dev" that is as passionate as music can be. Another exotic offering is from indi darlings SUEDE "Everything Will Flow" Nude UK. What propels this into the exotic realm is the first class trance mix by Rollo. Effective sequencing and enticing percussion should place this release into a variety of sets. Rollo fans should take note that they rarely work with such a youthful sexy male vocalist. Send review material to: |