Ken Ishii - Sleeping Madness

R & S Records: 1999

Not the actual follow-up to Ken Ishii's breakout album Jelly Tones, but generally thought of as the spiritual successor. The between LP Metal Blue America is just a tad too rare and a tad too 'American' for most folks to bother with. What's rather sad is, for the longest time, I wasn't really aware of Sleeping Madness either. For sure I knew of Ishii, but by the time I started noticing his albums in local stores, we were already at Future In Light (aka: that one with the 3D model outline as cover art). Better distribution deals likely helped in that regard, as finding R & S Records releases in Canada was none too easy or cheap in the '90s, no matter how critically exceptional they were (I'm looking at you, SAW 86-92).

Of course, our modern times has left most of these nuisances nicely in the past, and catching up on Ken's work has been one of my long-gestating tasks, if not an exceptionally pressing one. Sleeping Madness is as good as any record to carry on with, showcasing his distinct take on Detroit techno by way of Neo-Tokyo, while also highlighting some of the broader developments the genre had started incorporating by the late '90s. Yes, I'm talking about that almost entirely forgotten trend techno couldn't help but indulge in: jazz.

Oh yeah, there's that jazz, man. Where Is The Dusk features busy drums, organ licks, and layered strings creating a bizarre discordant melody that fits snugly with the seemingly chaotic rhythms. If that wasn't jazzy enough, here's a collaboration with DJ Spooky (that subliminal kid), bringing his trippy hip-hop style to Enso Online - yeah, man, dig d'at cello bassline action, yo'! Missing Melody's title is apt, mostly a spazzy, swingin' rhythm workout that can't have at least been partially inspired by Squarepusher's antics; Game Over too, with Co-Fusion bringing a little more rocky feel to the party.

And golly gee, had Ken Ishii been feeling a bit of that tech-house bug that was creeping in the scene too? 24bit Optimist has a nice, bumpin' rhythm going for it that's not too hard and not too fast, though does morph into that classic Ishii techno stylee with the neon-kissed melodies reverberating off tall Shinjuku towers. Plus, I'd expect nothing less than a little tribal tech-house groove from a collab' with Talvin Singh in Water Dripping Down On The Middle Of The Forehead, no matter how many Japanese electro sounds Ken throws in there.

The rest of Sleeping Madness mostly features all the vintage Ishii techno you want and crave. Man, I don't know how to describe the sounds in Misprogrammed Day, but that beat thumps, and that sinewy hook coils itself around my cochlea like a... never mind. Really, this album offers enough familiar sounds while working in unique, creative indulgences for a little spicy variety. Yes, even a trip-hop secret song, because it's the late '90s, and everyone wants a spoonful of that Massive Attack gravy.

BT - Movement In Still Life

ZYX Music: 2000

(a Patreon Reqest from Omskbird)

And thank goodness it's a request for the original UK version, not the busted-ass American version. I've let my dislike of Movement In Still Life: US Edition known, but I cannot reiterate enough just how much that version turned me off from BT's future output. Like, the cover shot alone felt confrontational to a connoisseur of the clubbing underground, Mr. Transeau pretty-boy mugging suggesting a run with boy-band fame and fortune. Throw in the fact tracks were neutered to pop-friendly lengths, plus lacking two of my hotly anticipated BT cuts at the time (Hip Hop Phenomenon and Fibonacci Sequence), and you can understand my utter bewilderment after my first playthrough. For a release that was clearly executive managed for max North American appeal, it had the exact opposite effect for yours truly. Epic fail, yo'!

When I heard an alternate, original version existed across the Atlantic Ocean, I knew, unheard, it was the superior cut of the album. Then global internet forums compared notes, confirming my suspicion of just how shafted American BT fans were on Movement In Still Life: Inferior Version. Unless some of y'all liked the US edition. For the love of me, I cannot imagine why. Too much awesome to handle in the UK edition?

That all said, it was many years before I got around to hearing Movement In Still Life: UK Edition, for no better reason than it was too expensive to import. In fact, it wasn't until I started revisiting some of BT's earlier albums for this blog that I finally checked it out, and wouldn't you know it, I quite enjoyed what I heard! Hip Hop Phenomenon is here! The Sasha collaboration Ride is here! The Paul van Dyk collaboration Namistai is here! The full-length versions of Godspeed, Dreaming, Mercury & Solace and Running Down The Way Up are here! Andy Gray is here! Wait, what?

Superior songs and superior cuts of tracks notwithstanding, what makes Movement In Still Life: Superior Version so good is the flowing sequencing of tunes, of which the Paul Oakenfold co-producer had a helping hand in. It supplies a fun opening of various breakbeat tuneage, nu-skool still in its infancy and BT still showing restraint in how overtly complicated he made his productions. Following Hip Hop Phenomenon, we're served up some requisite classy progressive trance, most of which holds up to this day. Fine, I'll admit I was never that big a fan of Dreaming, but mostly due to how overplayed the generic trance remixes were – the nine-minute cut here at least provides some stylish detours throughout its runtime. The final couple tracks do a decent job winding things down, with Hybrid lending their breakbeat science to BT's non-abusive stutter effects, and Satellite serving as a nice, mellow chill-hop closer.

Overall, Movement In Still Life: The True Version does a good job capturing what was popping in UK clubland at the turn of the century. Perhaps not as adventurous as ESCM was, but certainly more consistent throughout.

Sixtoo - Jackals And Vipers In Envy Of Man

Ninja Tune: 2007

It must be difficult holding out on chasing trends. The music rags rave on about what's 'cutting edge' and 'fresh hotness', your peers can't help but dabble in new tricks and toys, and all the while a burgeoning audience emerges from corners long thought untappable. Sure, you have your loyal, dependable, old-school followers, but surely the temptation lurks to explore a little, just a little. A peak around the corner, a glance over the hill, a click of a link from a somewhat trusted source. It didn't look like Robert Squire was in any rush to do so though. Even as his brand of scratch-heavy trip-hop continuously lost ground to the incoming wave of grime and dubstep, his Sixtoo project kept the faith for much of the '00s. Yeah, he found a couple toys to tinker with (sample pad!), but it never compromised his style.

After eking out a career in Eastern Canada, Sixtoo got picked up by Ninja Tune, and it looked like things were flying breezy for Mr. Squire. After the release of this particular album though, his studio suffered a break-in, with everything involving his Sixtoo project pilfered. Not just the material for a new album, but all his years of back-ups, archives, samples, and the works. Everything! Sensing it a sign to move on in his music career, Rob shuttered the Sixtoo alias, switched cities to the West coast of Canada, and started making deep acid house as Prison Garde. Because they all turn to house eventually (sometimes techno too).

Before that though, he released Jackals And Vipers In Envy Of Man, which looks to be the final Sixtoo record. Unless he starts feeling nostalgic for his hip-hop roots, which could happen, maybe, possibly. Hard to start from scratch like he'd have to though. Makes better sense starting a whole different project, maybe with some 'support from Sixtoo', if you catch my drift. Why am I rambling like this? Damn Raptors victories, distracting my thoughts so easily.

Like many of his previous works (Boxcutter Emporium, Duration Project), Jackals And Vipers is essentially an extended music session exploring similar sounds and samples, giving each 'part' a live turntable vibe. Except this isn't all live turntables, but mixing and matching drum breaks and samples with some effects fun thrown in. Take those sessions, refine them in post-production, and voila, thirteen tracks of various non-rapping hip-hop business. Some parts last less than a minute, but most reaching the three-to-five minute range.

And there's not much else to say about Jackals And Vipers, if I'm honest. As mentioned, Sixtoo brings an unfussy, uncomplicated style to the music, riding rhythms as he feels them out, never gunking things up with superfluous effects and nonsense glitchiness. I wouldn't have minded some rappity-raps over a few of these, but they're fine without vocals too. It's a vintage Ninja Tune sound, which again was kinda' surprising to hear in the year 2007, what with The Bug's London Zoo just around the corner.

Luke Slater - Freek Funk

NovaMute: 1997

(a Patreon Request from Omskbird)

I feel compelled to go into a lengthy diatribe over how difficult it was to get this album. I mean, why this one? It's chump-cheap on the Discogs market, and Amazon isn't far behind. Somehow though, Luke Slater's Freek Funk was vexed, a Patreon Request from as far back as February, only now getting done due to shipping shenanigans. I wax enough over my music buying/hunting/savaging practices though, and who needs to read about disappearing shipments and borders confiscations.

So I've talked up Luke Slater plenty now, though almost exclusively his side-projects and side-projects that are more popular than his main-name albums. Still, Planetary Assault Systems remains his most fruitful alias, so it's no surprise he returned to it after a few shots at making a name for himself under his own name. The move from pummelling techno tools into more club-friendly territory was met with about as much resistance as you'd expect from the underground faithful, and the cross-over appeal simply wasn't having it in the year 2002. Back to the welcoming hands of faceless Berlin bosh, then, and everything was good again.

Before we got to that point, however, we have his first stab at a cross-over record; or a record that did away with the silly anonymous techno producer thing. Because if David Holmes and Laurent Garnier could make respectable techno records with their real names, then by g'ar so could Luke Slater. And I'm just being goofy in calling Freek Funk a cross-over album. Yeah, Luke Slater's no longer a faceless techno producer, and this stuff is certainly more accessible to the material he was releasing on Peacefrog Records or as The 7th Plain earlier in his career. Plus, in the year 1997, one couldn't help but fall sway to the trends of the time in his native Britain. So here's a big beat track in Bless Bless, and some trip-hop offerings in Zebediah and Walking The Line. Just, y'know, done in a techno-y sort of way.

And for you purists out there, Freek Funk provides plenty of the pounding bosh, Engine One, Filter 2 and Time Dancer doing the dutiful dancefloor demolishin'. Elsewhere Mr. Slater gets his futuristic Detroit-bleep on (Purely, Origin, titular cut), and even has a stab at the ol' electro with Are You There? Then there's Love, a track that sounds like nothing else on this album, but damn if it doesn't predict The Field's ultra-loopy melodic pseudo-trance vibes nearly a decade early. You'll definitely want to feel a good gurn on this one.

Lots of techno variety then, though that unfortunately impedes the album some, almost too much going on for it to stick in your mind. It's the same problem Garnier's 30 had, and though Luke does try bridging the more jarring stylistic transitions of Freek Funk with interstitial Scores, it still isn't enough for things to come together as a seamless whole. It's a messy album, but certainly worth a listen for the gems throughout.

The Sabres Of Paradise - Haunted Dancehall

Warp Records: 1994

I didn't have the greatest introduction to The Sabres Of Paradise, which may seem strange considering it was their agreed-upon classic Smokebelch II (Beatless Mix) that was my introduction. Appearing as it did in that Techno Nights – Ambient Dawn compilation though, it sounded so out of place and strange, especially on the supposed 'techno' CD. Even as time went on and I understood the significance of the tracks selected for that collection, Smokebelch II still never clicked with me. I assumed it would remain one of those tracks that made perfect sense if you had “been there” when it was rinsed out at all those infamous British raves during a misty sunrise in farmer's fields, but not walking home in the grey rain of the Canadian west coast.

Still, that didn't stop me from being intrigued by their sophomore effort Haunted Dancehall, if nothing else than for Jack Moss' review of it on TranceCritic. I mean, just the concept alone is catnip, the idea of crafting a soundtrack to a raver noir novel that didn't actually exist. Or maybe Andrew Weatherall had the story in mind all along, but lacked the confidence in his written prose to do it justice, settling on liner note 'excerpts' instead. Hey, I can dig that. Some folks feel they're at their creative best in specific lanes, and Weatherall clearly knows his lane's in the DJing domain. Still, his production ain't much of a slouch either.

Though let's not forget the other players involved with this Sabres Of Paradise project, including members of Brit-tronica outfit The Aloof in Jagz Kooner and Gary Burns. Throw in a Portishead remix on Planet D and a proper dancehall-dub contribution from Steve Gilderon Wilmot, and you've one remarkably diverse album in Haunted Dancehall. You wouldn't expect anything less from an early Warp Records record though, would you?

In fact, I'm not sure folks really knew what to make of it back when, what with no clear-cut singles springing from the album. The Sabres basically had to self-release the funky blaxploitation breaks of Theme as an EP, while dubby groover Wilmot did some solo business as well. No Smokebelches though – not even a Beatless Mix. I wager that Chapel Street Market 9am comes close though, capturing a similar 'morning after daze' vibe.

And gosh, the rest? Whatever that ultra-metallic funky rhythm is in Bubble And Slide. The rolling jazz-dub of Duke Of Earlsfield. Tow Truck screaming for a British crime-caper. The effortless cinematic IDM funk of Ballad Nicky McGuire (seriously, d'at rhythm!). While not quite as leftfield as stars of Artificial Intelligence went, the sound-craft on Haunted Dancehall easily puts it on par with The Black Dogs and Autechres of the era. The only reason it doesn't get brought up in similar discussion is either The Sabres' earlier discography of straight-forward rave records, or their audacity in tying all their tunes into some sort of narrative. Fools, we can't have folks actually understanding these tracks!

ACE TRACKS: April 2019

So apparently Game Of Thrones is coming to an end soon, a series I know quite a bit about without having seen a single episode or read a lick of novel. Like so many things that infect pop culture, its permeated so much of everyone's daily discourse that one cannot help but absorb it through osmosis. Some will say that I'm not really experiencing the series in such a way, that getting a general glean of it from funny memes, think pieces, parody spoilers, and water-cooler talk doesn't begin to detail all the nuances the show offers. Pshaw, I say. After so many years of the show being around, I know plenty 'nuff of it. There's a winter coming, a wedding massacre, a bunch of people vying for a throne, a lot of people dying that deserve to die, and a lot of people dying that don't deserve to die (also: lots a' bewbs). Plus, I already know most of the main characters. Gander:


Ned Stark: Is Sean Bean. Most definitely is killed.
Jon Snow: The Aragon of this fantasy series.
Cersei: Queen bitch, trifle not with.
Tyrion: That cool dwarf dude.
Arya Stark: The Battle Angel Alita of the series.
Sansa Stark: The other Stark daughter; taller than Alita.
Joffry: Some punk kid everyone really hated early on.
Dragon Lady: Has dragons, eventually.
Jason Momoa: Does Momoa things, probably.
Bran Stark: Important, I think? Don't see many memes with him though, so how important, really?
Hodor: Holds a door.
The Night King: Is Snoke'd.

I think those are the main beats covered. And speaking of beats, here's another playlist of ACE fresh Track beats from the month of April 2019!


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
The Circular Ruins & Mystified - Fantastic Journey
Various - fabric 14: Stacey Pullen
Nunc Stans - Elementa
Ambidextrous - Echoes of Science

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 0%
Percentage Of Rock: 0%
Most “WTF?” Track: Nothing terribly out of the ordinary in this one, though a Prodigy track may turn your head.

Nothing too fancy in this playlist. Just the usual assortment of genres that leans heavily into my preferred tastes, as can be expected when going through albums I've recently picked up for myself. Nay, the real eclectic stuff tends to leap out when I'm doing the big blocks of singular letters, where decades (!!) of music gathering shows its face. Or, y'know, I come into ownership of another person's decades-old CD collection. Been a while since that's happened though. Have I gotten all that others are willing to part with?

The Prodigy - No Tourists

BMG: 2018

(a Patreon Request from Philoi)

I may have passed on The Prodigy post-Millennium, but that doesn't mean I didn't keep some tabs on them, the lingering question of “are they still going?” always tugging at my curiosity. Truth is, questions of 'relevancy' were long since dashed after Liam Howlett failed to keep pace with electronic music's mutations throughout the '00s, and it seemed he spent a lost decade of figuring out just where his brand of thrashy-bash stadium fodder fit. I think he eventually sorted it out, and No Tourists finds the Prodge machine running as smoothly as one could expect/hope for in the year 2018.

Which, for all intents, may end up being the final official Prodigy album, what with Keith Flint's passing and all. Yes, Liam was the brains behind nearly all the music that ever came from the Prodigy banner, but as a live act, 'Keef's presence was what catapulted the group from rave favourites to something marketable across the globe. For good or ill, it was Mr. Flint and his iconic double-'hawk hairdo that got him front and centre on Spin Magazine (and lampooned by Weird Al's quickie Lousy Haircut), not Maxim's cat eye lenses, Liam's nose-ring or Leeroy's... gangling legs? Howlett long claimed the tunes he made were just as much in service of Keith's antics as anything ear-catching or club smashing, knowing he'd struck upon a winner if his stage jester went completely ape-shit to it as the tune blasted from stacks of speakers. It's difficult imagining Liam finding the same level of musical confidence without Keith's moshing approval.

And that's the vibe I get from No Tourists, ten tracks designed with maximum thrash appeal for those who still have a fondness for Prodigy of old. Still, I won't deny almost fearing the worst with opener Need Some1, the track sounding like it's cribbing from the school of Pendulum rather than anything Liam built. Fear not, my friends, for follow-up Light Up The Sky brings back the big boshing beats of yore, with red-lined acid thrash and sped-up rasta vocals. Yes, it's way familiar of Prodigy of old, but isn't that what we've always wanted from them anyway?

The other track that treads into contemporary festival cliches is Timebomb Zone, and only because those chipmunk vocals aren't of vintage rave stock. Boom Boom Tap too, I guess, though I sense that one's more a pisstake of trap anthems than a sincere attempt – how else to explain a curt “fuck you” at the drop before unleashing fierce jungle on your ears? As for the rest, No Tourists is all fine, the sort of tuneage intended for quick, explosive release, then just as soon passed on by. There little that sticks with you like classic Prodigy of the past, but for the time you spend with them here (a rather brisk thirty-seven minutes!), it's a fun ride. And, given the circumstances, if this does mark the final Prodigy album, it's a fine final send-off as well. Respect.

ACE TRACKS: December 2018

Well, that was a disappointing year. Oh, I'm not talking about all that other stuff, though it wasn't any sunshine either. Not that I was surprised by much of it, that Gen-X upbringing bracing myself for all manner of nihilistic developments as history unfolds. Still, there were little signs and portents that maybe, just maybe, things will turn around.

But no, I'm talking about on a personal front, specifically with regards to this blog. The Year 2018 saw my lowest output yet (again!), which is crazy considering I probably bought more music than ever before. It's like, in getting so many new items, I just don't have the time to digest them, taking me longer to form cohesive thoughts and opinions before committing them from fingers to keyboard. On the other hand, I did actually finish my initial goal of listening to everything I have in alphabetical order, so there's that to be proud of. Already feels like an age ago though. Also, since I'm now dedicating one day per week to Patreon-exclusive reviews, that has cut a tad back on content here. Maybe I ought to re-upload those Patreon posts here, after a month of time has passed from their posting? Maybe...


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Various - Aeon Nemesis
Supercar - Highvision
Aquasky - Aftershock
Various - Alien Dust 1
TUU - All Our Ancestors

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 0%
Percentage Of Rock: 16%
Most “WTF?” Track: Igorrr is as wonky as it gets, though compared to some of the other offerings off that album...

Gosh, what an enjoyable playlist this month turned out. Like, it's already chock full of choice tunes, but even some of the pairings are fun. For instance, going from the faux-live antics of Scooter, to the proper-live antics of Daft Punk, what a contrast! Then you got peppy synth pop, classy progressive house, thoughtful ambient techno, nifty psy-chill, assorted miscellaneous stuff keeping things diverse, and a dash of rock AND roll for spicy flavor. Gonna' make sure this one makes the list of ACE Ace Tracks Playlists!

Slam - Alien Radio

Soma Quality Recordings: 2001

This is an album you'd think I'd have gotten when it was new. Thanks to endless Muzik Magazine plugging, lead singles like Lifetimes and Alien Radio were hyped to such a degree that I just had to have them! ...as found on AudioGalaxy and free CD giveaways at least. Still, I liked those tunes, and I'm sure they'd be enough of a lure should I have found them within the Vancouver music shops. I don't recall spotting the album though, or if I did, something of greater interest nabbed my attention when burning limited funds in those early '00s recovery years (ooh, what's this Stylophonic about?). Time passes, and I think less and less of catching up on what Slam's been up to, Alien Radio fading from my thoughts as so many records do. Nice of that 20 Years Soma compilation to remind me (and a certain reader) of this album.

My memory's a little hazy now, but I believe Alien Radio was seen as Slam's big attempt at a big crossover event. Misters Meikle and McMillan were already respected techno producers, and being the brains behind Soma Quality Recordings certainly gave them a major feather in their cap. Despite being in the game for a decade though, they'd only released one album, 1996's Headstates. I honestly don't know much about it – never seen it name-dropped in “best of” lists or anything – but I'm sure it sounds fine. Given their pedigree, however, folks expected them capable of a classic LP effort, something that could be said along with the likes of Leftism, Dubnobasswithmyhead, Snivilisation, and whatever other classic UK techno efforts you consider Very Important.

To do that, however, you need a smashing radio single, and Lifetimes has all the hallmarks of that: killer hook, great vocal, strong musical build. Maybe just a little too on the nose for Slam's usual audience though. The titular cut is probably more up their alley, getting in on that nu-skool breaks action. No? Then what about Eyes Of Your Soul, a stab at vintage Lil' Louis Vegas deep, dubby house, including sporadic, echoing lyrics from Tyrone 'Visionary' Palmer? Still no? Then Dot Allison coming in with some wide-screen, chill-out vibes in Visions, that's gotta' serve your Slam needs! Or that Narco Tourists jam, that's gotta' satisfy even the most ardent old-schooler around, as lovely a chill-breaks-techno outing as you'll ever hear. Not old-school enough? Well, fine, here's Positive Education again, the original 1993 tune that made Slam's name in techno, given the reissue treatment since it never appeared on an album before. If that's not covering all the potential bases, I don't what is.

I rib, but for as solid and class as all these genre exercises are, I honestly get the most kicks out of the two straight-forward techno cuts closing out Alien Radio. Bass Addiction is a no-nonsense, thumping audio rumbler of a tune, while Virtuoso serves up some proper retro-future Detroit action. Keepin' it underground, keepin' it safe.

Scooter - Age Of Love (Original TC Review)

Club Tools: 1997

(2018 Update:
My head tells me I should hate this. My gut tells me it. Heck, even my heart tells me it. Yet, there's something that always keeps me from hating this album like I'm told I'm supposed to. Some overpowering feels from the spleen? Like, I don't go out of my way to play this often, maybe once every few years, save a chance random encounter on my media player's shuffle option, but when it does play, I still get into it just the same. I think this album releases the same stoopid-fun endorphins tracks like Sash!'s Ecuador does, and there's nothing wrong with that. We all have our silly little pleasures within our musical tastes, and if you don't, then I imagine you're just a dreadful bore to be around.

As for how Scooter's career went after I wrote this review, the group jumped on the dubstep bandwagon. Of course they would.)


IN BRIEF: Scooter’s turning point.

As vehemently as they’ll deny it, it’s safe to say a lot of EDM’s followers went through a Scooter phase. For some it may have been a brief flirtation during their initial rave years, others a lingering dedication. However long it was though, the reasons for it tend to be the same: the group made some undeniably fun anthems.

Ah, you’ve noticed the use of past tense. I suppose I should explain. Y’see, friends, Scooter’s discography can easily be split into two eras, each with a number of name variations. For example: Bueller years/post-Bueller years; pre-excessive covers/post-excessive covers; pre-shit/shit. Whatever you call it, Scooter’s initial mid-90s output was a guilty pleasure for many. That all changed when Ferris Bueller (aka: Sören Bühler, H.P.'s cousin) left and the group and began relying more on covers rather than original productions for their hit singles. Accusations of ‘sell-out’ and ‘going to Hell in a cheese basket’ dominated many discussions, and Scooter became the target of every biting punch-line regarding the worst aspects of commercialized dance. They may not have much artistic credibility left, but who cares about that when you can fight with Cascada for top spot on the dance charts, eh?

Anyhow, a change of direction often has a catalyst, and their album Age Of Love certainly was that. Beyond the fact this was the last Bueller album, there’s a sense Scooter were aiming for larger audiences than their initial happy hardcore fanbase, and why not? This was 1997 here, folks, when everyone figured they just might have a chance at hitting the big time. So how does one go about doing so?

First, out goes the hardcore and in comes more of the trance; nearly half the album is dedicated to the popular club style of the era that wasn't too different from most euro-dance (re: pre-epic). Next, branch out into other genres that are garnering attention from the masses: big beat, jungle, rock hybrids -‘electronica’, in other words. And finally, have one of your singles feature on a major motion picture to grab that always lucrative non-electronic consumer. Perfect formula for success, right? Um...

Alright, the big single here, Fire, certainly did succeed in its aim. Aside from the fact it is a decent bit of hard dance fun, by featuring on sequel soundtracks to Mortal Kombat and Hackers, Scooter got to rub elbows with respected names like Leftfield, The Prodigy, and Juno Reactor. Along the way, the thrashin’ guitar riffs grabbed the approving attention of many metal-heads. I’d commonly hear “fuck, that fucking techno shit is fucking shit, but Fire’s alright” from long-haired associates.

Then there’s The Age Of Love. I’ve heard it called corny, cheesy, and a complete rip-off of the Terminator theme; in trying to combine the sounds of trance with the effusive sentimentality of happy hardcore, Scooter created a disgrace of a tune. Oh shut up. Yes, it is all those things. That’s exactly the point! It’s what Scooter did so well in those days: pure, guilt-free anthemic fun. This is ‘stadium techno’ as The KLF spearheaded, and The Age Of Love is just as effective as anything they did.

The rest of the album mostly amounts to agreeable filler. There really isn’t anything that is whole-sale awful, but nor does it leap out at you as essential either. Hit The Drum stands out a bit more by getting back to a ‘stadium techno’ sound, and includes one of H.P.’s more ridiculous lines: “‘Cause we are ready to shake the nation with another creation!” Also, Tonight’s take on ol’ school jungle and Return Of The Future’s standard trance execution are intriguingly entertaining, mostly for the fact they veer so far off the expected Scooter path; if you didn’t know better, you’d swear they were by another act. However, these examples didn’t win over their detractors then, and they certainly won’t today either.

Still, Age Of Love is probably one of the better albums in Scooter’s discography. Even when the songs are little more than simple dance pop, they present them with such infectious zesty energy it is hard to resist, provided you leave the Bitter Beer in the cooler before listening. If you are quite new to this whole electronic music thing, you could do worse (like Scooter’s recent offerings). And even if you aren’t, Age Of Love still has a bit of charm for those moments when you just need a reason to get up and shout. Nothing wrong with that, now is there?

ACE TRA-

Oh, wait. There’s one more track here. A cover of a Depeche Mode song. Hold on... *plays the ballad Leave In Silence*

I take it all back. Scooter are shit.

Written by Sykonee for TranceCritic.com, 2007. © All rights reserved

Aquasky - Aftershock

Moving Shadow: 2000

Aquasky was among Moving Shadow's new breed of drum 'n' bass tastemakers taking the scene into bold new territories as the Millennium turned. I know this, because a lot of the PR blurbs surrounding Aquasky said so. More than that, they had no problem flitting beyond the strict borders junglists demanded of their artists. Breaks? Sure, they can do that too, and maybe even give a few bassline pointers to those emerging nu-skool doods. Trip hop? Ain't no th'ang, every ace producer having a chill side too. Nu-jazz? Oh, hey, let's not get carried away. Just because Kruder & Dorfmeister tapped a track for their DJ-Kicks doesn't mean you should go that far beyond your boundaries. Maybe try something safer, like jazzstep. (note: the tune on DJ-Kicks is jazzstep, but why ruin a joke with facts?)

A trio of cats (Brent Newitt, Kieron Bailey, Dave Wallace), Aquasky initially debuted with a handful of singles on Moving Shadow, as many d'n'b acts were wont to do. They must have generated quite the buzz, as Polydor swooped in and offered them a deal, the mini-album Orange Dust emerging. I assume that didn't turn out as the players involved hoped, for Aquasky was right back in the Moving Shadow fold shortly after, releasing a proper LP in the form of Bodyshock. That one did better, so good that a remix album was commissioned the following year. That's no small feat, remix albums few and far between within the d'n'b scene to that point. Goldie's Timeless never got one. Roni Size's New Forms never got one. Perhaps a couple stray examples exist throughout the '90s, but fact remains Aftershock is a rare beast for its time. Or a hastily cobbled cash-grab quick to capitalize on all the hype Bodyshock had generated – would explain the totally borked track list on the CD.

No, seriously, how does one completely screw up a track list like this? Nothing is sequenced as laid out on the back of the booklet, and given that the compilation itself actually flows remarkably well for a remix album, I'm assuming what I hear is the intended order. Corduroy's rub on Battlestar is a fine funky, bass-heavy opener, while Sketch's go with Sonix feeds your reptile brain with some savage bass throbs and shuffly 2-step rhythms. At track five, we take a break from the breaks 'n' bass business for Mr. Scruff lending his funky jazz touch to Man Made Symphony, but for the longest time, I was told this was Stalker (Timecode Remix). Given the players involved, that don't make a lick of sense.

I suspected something was up when the obviously London Elektricity rub of Rebirth was titled Zero Tollerance (Aquasky Remix), and the track titled Rebirth (London Elektrcity Remix) sounded nothing like a London Elektricity remix. It wasn't until The Lord That Knows All graced my existence that I was enlightened upon Moving Shadows' erroneous handling of Aftershock. I wonder if that's why Aquasky left the label again, after this?

ACE TRACKS: November 2018

As I accumulate more and more music, certain trends start appearing, like preferred genres or running themes among cover art (so many pictures of Saturn). One thing I hadn't counted, however, was having far more items of certain years compared to others. 1995 in particular has remained top dog for as long as I've noticed this trend, although the years 2015 and 2007 are often nipping at its heels. By comparison, 2005 has been abysmal for my CD collection, the only competitors being its neighbouring years of 2004 and 2006. That is, if you don't include anything prior to 1993, the year I started buying my own music, and when electronic music really started taking off in my far flung corner of the world. Maybe if I go on a binge of hair metal or protest folk, my stacks of older decades will start looking more buff, but that'd dilute the electronic purity I've cultivated all these years.

Anyhow, I've mentioned this curiosity many times before, and I just assumed it being a case of the mid-'90s being awesome for electronic music, the mid-'00s being shite for electronic music, and the mid-'10s being resurgently awesome for electronic music. In simpler language, there was more dope music in 1995 than any other time, or at least that which I've consistently gone back to. I've posited this theory on the TranceAddict forums, and it seems I'm not alone in noticing this, some there realizing their Discoggian 'Want List' is rather slight for 2005 and its compatriots. Hell, the only reason I figure 2007 is so beefy in my archives is due to the all the reviews I was writing for TranceCritic around that time.

Does anyone else notice this within their own music collections, certain years being heavy favorites over others? Like, I assume this is only something folks with 500+ items spanning a few decades would at all, but I am curious nonetheless. Food for thought while y'all check out the ACE TRACKS for this past November.


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Supercar - Futurama
Alien Project - Activation Portal

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 0%
Percentage Of Rock: 8%
Most “WTF?” Track: Guess the Ab Fab single, for its mere existence.

Wow, this one turned out remarkably well! It's almost a proper playlist, and not just some arbitrary arrangement of select tunes I was listening to these past thirty days. I didn't even notice how similar Rapoon's The Same River Once and Sven Vath's Ritual Of Life were until being alphabetically paired together like that. And there's quite a few sections like that here. While I mostly make these things for my own use, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this one to anyone who's curious about a sampling of the sort of music I generally cover here. Yes, even the music I was requested to review!

The Future Sound Of London - Accelerator

Jumpin' & Pumpin'/Hypnotic: 1991/2002

The only Future Sound Of London album you need, if you listen to certain sorts of people. Let's call them 'stuck in The Haçienda' kind of people, UK ravers who never grew beyond that era's acid house scene, will only accept electronic music as it sounded then, and not a month later. Never mind that Brian Dougans and Garry Cobain ventured forth into new, fascinating realms of pure headtrip, mind-fuck album works – it's just not danceable, mate. I sense, though, such folks are forlorn at the coulda'-been, the shoulda'-been of FSOL's potential as studio hounds producing clubbing fodder. They made so many classic, genre-defining tunes at the time, the possibilities of what they might have done after had they scaled back the arty, pretentious aspirations boggles the mind. But nay, the lads from Manchester had grander visions in mind.

And I get it – oh man, do I ever get it. For as much as I've continued enjoying FSOL's work, there's an undeniable addictive simplicity about the tunes on Accelerator that remain effective to this day. Papua New Guinea, obviously, but I've no doubt tracks like the future-shock breaks of Expander, acid-bleep dopeness of Calcium, and blissed-out trancey acid house of Pulse State would be just as effective in any contemporary setting. Hell, I heard 1 In 8 at a music festival this past summer. 1 In 8, one of the 'filler' tracks on this album! Who plays 1 In 8 in this age? A DJ at Basscoast, apparently.

Still, one cannot deny there's some rather dated material on Accelerator too. Despite the smashing opening of Expander (oh, you just know Sasha cribbed that title), Stolen Documents is little more than a peppy transitional track of bleepy sounds and chirpy acid funk. While Others Cry has a little more personality going for it with its Balearic-Jamaican vibe (yes, really), nice for a sway in a hammock or beach lounge. On the other hand though, It's Not My Problem and Moscow have the unenviable task of bookmarking the album centrepiece of Papua New Guinea, and in being such abrasive, boshing tunes, neither are capable of it – you're just waiting for Papua while Problem is playing, and Moscow always feels like a comedown from New Guinea. As for hints at where FSOL would take their music, Central Industrial slows things down and plays up the future-shock scenery full-tilt. Psygnosis Studios were definitely paying attention.

When Accelerator was rolled out for a tenth anniversary re-issue, it included a bonus disc of Papua New Guinea remixes. Most of them take the tune's basic structure and re-purposes them into a particular genre (Satoshi Tomiie does the prog thing, Hybrid do the prog-breaks thing, Oil do the funk-dub thing). The most interesting of the lot are the Simian Mix, where the rock band turns Papua into a bizarre, stoned, jazz-stomp indie hoe-down (I'm sure Gary loved it), and Andrew Weatherall's eleven-minute rub – progressive house of epic proportions, that one!

Eat Static - Abduction (2018 Update)

Planet Dog/Attic: 1993/1995

(click here to read my original TranceCritic review)

Finally, an album long overdue for a spiffy re-review, one of my earliest, cumbersome efforts. Time to give this early goa trance classic the prose it justly deserves, none of that regrettably dry track-by-track description nonsense. Let's do this! *cracks knuckles* ...*stares at screen* ...*re-cracks knuckles* ...*makes some tea* ...*checks Twitter and Facebook for a bit* ...*watches some Ten Minute History videos on Youtube*(hehe, *thunk*) ...*stretches every ligament in body*...*stares at screen some more* ...*receives call from Seattle friend that he's waylaid at the Vancouver airport overnight, so meet-up for drinks and a VIP showing of The Freddy Mercury Movie* ...*gets back to computer, stares at screen even more* ...*realizes he's succumbed to paralysis by analysis*

Okay, so turns out I have perhaps a tad too much on my mind, with no clear idea of how to approach. Like, all the traditional angles are covered elsewhere (historical importance, themes explored, etc., etc.), and I see little point in re-iterating points. Really, there's only one that immediately springs to mind, and as usual, it relates to where things sat when I wrote that first review.

Oh, not so much me, as I've gone over that plenty 'nuff. No, I'm talking about Eat Static themselves, and how their career was looking in the dread year 2005 (music-wise, at least). It'd been four years since their last album, In The Nude!, which may not seem like a long time, but for an act that was releasing LPs on a near yearly clip, is quite a gap. And even then, were they still considered part of the psy trance lexicon? That album plus previous Crash And Burn! were showing far greater exploration outside the conventional psy parameters, which wasn't too surprising given the general trajectory the old goa guard seemed headed. Juno Reactor was getting big and opulent with Japanese concerts and orchestras, and Simon Posford had redefined psy-dub for a new generation, so why wouldn't Eat Static, what with a prog-rock background, also start feeling the need for something different? They must have worked it all out of their system though, as by 2007, they'd come back into the psy fold with De-Classified. And yeah, I didn't like that one at first, feeling it a regression of their songcraft, but compared to most psy of that time, has aged remarkably well.

And Eat Static (mostly just Merv now) just keep crankin' out the LPs, almost at the same rate as the '90s. Who'd have guessed they'd still be doing this when Abduction was released? Heck, who'd have predicted that scene itself would take the twisted turns it did. Listening to Abduction now, with how much it owes itself to the progressive house of the era as anything Goa or alien based, there truly is a sense of the UK raving masses still being a communal thing, willing to hear any crazy new idea so long as the rhythms last, the melodies soar, and the pills remain pure.

Transcend - 2001-2008

Ntone: 1995

And another CD I thought I'd never find, due to the fact I didn't know it existed. Absolutely I knew a few artists on that Tone Tales From Tomorrow Too compilation had music elsewhere, and even gathered a few items up from them (Spacetime Continuum, Neotropic, Sounds From The Ground, kinda'), but Transcend? Sure, the chap had two tracks on there, but he seemed like such an enigma, what with strange, obscure, futuristic track titles like 2003 and 2005. What hope could a teenager from the hinterlands of Canuckistan have in stumbling upon anything from the dude? Very little indeed, Transcend a nigh ghost within the Discoggian archives. This is his lone album, with a lone vinyl single with some of the same tracks coming out the year prior. Even his compilation-fu is sparse, a few scattered tunes on the usual suspects for trippy downtempo cropping up (Mind The Gap series, Instinct Records, Shadow Records). Darren Leathley, the chap behind Transcend, didn't do much else beyond Transcend either, a jungle cover of Pretty Vacant as Sub Carrier all that Lord Discogs provides.

What I hadn't counted on, however, is that Ninja Tune still has CD stock of this album, as revealed when I checked out their actual online store for the first time ever. Why hadn't I ever done that before? Because Ninja Tune music was always available in local stores, and I figured whatever was available here was available anywhere. Not the soundest of logic, but then, there was always Amazon too, providing the fallback. Now that I know it's there tho'... *giggity*

Oh, hey, maybe I should talk some actual music, eh? Ah, sadly, I'm not sure there's much to talk about here. 2001-2008 features eight tracks (2001 up through 2008), all doing that early '90s sample-dub stoner downtempo stuff quite a few folks were doing, and is strictly middle-of-the-road at that. Associated name-drops include The Orb, Psychic Warriors Ov Gaia, and maybe some post-Lifeforms FSOL for good measure. But all done in a real hazy, woozy, trippy meandering kind of way, which fits the 'experimental side of Ninja Tune' vibe Ntone was establishing itself as. I guess you could call this stuff illbient, though it lacks the turntablism that marked that genre's traits. I can't say I've heard much specifically like Transcend's style, but he's not doing much to elevate above the pack either.

If there's any distinct trait in this album, there's a loose idea of the evolution of civilization. The opening clutch of tracks mostly feature chill, laid-back tunes that have no problem throwing in a looping tribal beat, repeated stray woodwind sample, or ethnic chant into the dub stew (plus, big bong rips). The vibe turns urgent by mid-album (hey, it's the Tone Tales tunes!), and downright sketchy and paranoid too (2005). The final track, 2008, features tranquil jungle field recordings, eventually giving way to abrasive, rhythmic samples of deforestation – chopping, sawing, and felling of jungle growth, sending the local fauna fleeing for their lives. Message, much?

The Herbaliser - Wall Crawling Giant Insect Breaks

Ninja Tune: 1998

I've enjoyed Ninja Tune for as long as I've known they existed, yet there's a significant gap of their catalogue within my CD shelves: artist albums from their early years. It was all about the compilations from the Ninja folk, see, the most eye-catching of the lot always featuring their logo splayed across the front, unmissable, unmistakable. Aside from a couple CD singles though (because cost), it wasn't until Coldcut's Sound Mirrors that I actually bought a proper LP from the label. I've since scooped up a few '90s releases, but more as explorations of specific artists than the fact they were on Ninja Tune. Well, time to rectify that, fill in more glaring gaps in my ever expanding collection, starting with one of the print's longest contributors that isn't Coldcut: The Herbaliser. Erm, by way of a CD single. Can't knock old habits, I guess.

Have I talked much about The Herbaliser, beyond the requisite name-drops? I don't think I have. Let's talk about The Herbaliser. First off, despite a handle assuming a single individual performing an action involving herbs, The Herbaliser is in fact two London blokes, Jake Wherry and Ollie Teeba. They've added additional members over the years, but these two remain the core, turntablists rinsing out jazz and hip-hop with scratchtastic aplomb. Okay, maybe not ultra DMC-champion aplomb, but respectful enough to be included in discussion with many UK heavyweights of the '90s. I'm sure the Ninja Tune bump helped, though they'd been making the live rounds a couple years before getting their break with the Coldcut crew.

Wall Crawling Giant Insect Breaks was among the lead singles for their third album Very Mercenary. Ain't nothing fancy about this outing, Wall Crawl a straight-up hippin', hoppin', scratch breaks throwdown that'll get the b-boys pounding the ground - I don't know if that's the proper lingo. There's two versions of Wall Crawl, the first featuring a bunch of spoken samples about hip-hop's history, sound frequencies, time travelling, and some teenager astounded by his ability to scale a wall just as easily as a giant insect, like a wall-crawling human... spider! Ooh, I know this one, I know this one! The Blue Beetle, amirite? There's also a shorter, instrumental version just featuring the drum breaks, but isn't as much fun to hear without all the cheeky samples.

Instead of remixes, we get two live recordings of tunes from The Herbaliser's previous album, Blow Your Headphones. The first, Ginger Jumps The Fence, does more of the funk-hop jimmy jam with an earwormy string section in the lead. There's a scratch solo ('natch), a saxaphone solo (eeug, me ears), and an... organ 'n flute solo? Something like that. 40 Winks is more on that downtempo vibe, a smooth bit of soul-jazz for the end of an evening. Finally, an untitled Bonus Beats track replays a bunch of breaks from Wall Crawl, supposedly for your own turntable sessions. Wait, is that even possible in CD form?

ACE TRACKS: July 2018

Another month, another review quota quite short of what I was able to crank out even a year ago. What's up with that, eh? Well, aside from having a mini-break for the Basscoast music festival, I figure two factors have hit me in such a way I never anticipated. For one, the fact is a lot of my current reviews are of material that is relatively fresh and new to my years. When I was mostly going through my older CDs, I already had many thoughts and criticisms built in by many years of replay – even the ones I didn't replay often still gave me talking points about why they ended up as duds in my music collection. That makes cranking out a review of it exceedingly easy, 75% of it practically already formed inside my brain matter. Aside from a few older items though, most of what I'm covering now doesn't have that long gestating benefit, creating something of a crunch on my cranium. Having an extra day to make sure my thoughts aren't some slapdash hot-take is practically required now, which unfortunately does reduce my output clip a little. So it goes.

The other reason there's a little lag these days is due to it being unbearably muggy this summer, my prime writing hours (usually early evening) all but null and void. Fortunately, that 2am time-slot seems to work out in a pinch, if I've overslept an evening nap. Best way to get past the gruelling setting-sun heat in this west-facing apartment of mine. Wasn't such an issue in summer's past, is what I'm saying.

Yeah yeah, bunch a' belly-aching here. Can I help it if I set myself up for a standard that I can't always maintain? In any event, here's the ACE TRACKS of July 2018.


Full track list here.

MISSING ALBUMS:
Mick Chillage - Harmonic Connections
Tipper - The Critical Path
Tomita - The Firebird
Porya Hatami & Lee Anthony Norris - Every Day Feels Like A New Drug

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 0%
Percentage Of Rock: 8%
Most “WTF?” Track: that one Andrew Heath track? No, of course not, it's still the ever-lasting Oak Ridge Boys.

This seems short, even for a month like this one. It's got the usual stuff you probably expect out of these playlists as of late: a little ambient, a little techno, a little house, a lot of stuff that sounds like the '80s. Shame no Tomita made it in, though. That would have given this playlist some unexpected pep.

Tipper - The Critical Path

Higher Ground: 2000

(A Patreon Request from Omskbird)

Despite it soon dominated by *those* basslines, there's a reason why nu-skool breaks was briefly considered among the cutting-edge tuneage in electronic music: producers were eschewing traditional standbys like sampling and bigging-up the beats in favour of cribbing technical innovations from the IDM camps. Micro edits! Digital scratching! Glitchin' that shit up! Of course, by the time the nu-skoolers had gotten their mitts on these toys, the IDM world had long moved on, but it's not like the IDM and breaks scenes would ever cross-pollinate again. (oh hi, Venetian Snares)

Among those early innovators was Dave Tipper, a nu-skool hero for the headier heads (and a glitch-hop favourite when nu-skool became old-n-busted school). He never achieved the same level of commercial fame as other players in this particular scene (Rennie Pilgrim, Adam Freeland, that attention whore BT, who only dabbled in nu-skool but somehow took almost all the glory... *ahem*), but that's how his followers like it. Tipper is their guy, making music for their brain matter. Sure, it's nice you can find him headlining festival stages and all, but he's playing his music for their DMT trip. Why yes, I've had this conversation at the Shambhala Music Festival, why do you ask?

After a couple singles sticking to conventional breaks of the '90s, (big beat, acid crunch, trip-hop), his Twister record marked a sudden change in how his sound would carry forward. The Critical Path is the debut album that followed, and offers ample amounts of that nu-fangled take on the broken-beat. No samples of obscure funk, every piece of rhythm an original construct. Except maybe opener Seldom Vile, in that it at times reminds me of Aphex Twin's Acrid Avid Jam Shred. Hey, I told you nu-skool were aping things IDM had done half a decade prior.

At eleven tracks long, Tipper gets plenty of room to show off all the fancy nu-gimmicks in his computer arsenal, more than half the tracks varied examples of what breaks of the future might evolve into (before the 'tear-out' guys sullied it). This being the year 2000, he gets in a couple trip-hop cuts too, including Zero 7 favourite Sophie Barker on vocals. And what would a breaks album of that period be without a little Hybrid borrowing, a few tunes working in orchestral swells as well.

And the music itself? Well, if you like Phase 1 nu-skool, you probably already have this. It took me a little to get warmed to it myself, and there are portions where Tipper comes down with BT-itis, over-indulging the effects to ludicrous extremes (oh God, are they ever ridiculous in Last Informer - impossible to pay attention to Ms. Barker's lyrics with that much nonsense going on in the background). Overall, I was more impressed by Tipper's sound design than his songcraft, but so long as tunes like Twister, Sort Code, and Supersport have me imagining blistering down hyper-sonic race tracks through ancient temples and lunar colonies, mission accomplished, I say.

ACE TRACKS: June 2018

So this past month hasn't been the most active with regards to reviews, not even cracking the twenty-mark. Whatever has caused this plunge in productivity, you may wonder. Has the uncertainty of continued gainful employment sent my psyche into chaotic disarray? Perhaps a comparatively dreary June has sent me into a depressive sickness and funk? Or maybe those weekly bonus mini-reviews over on my Patreon have eaten more free writing time than I could have ever predicted? None of the above, I say!

Truth is, I've been distracted by something far more insidious, a Real Time Strategy game. Yes, I decided to dust off the ol' Rise Of Nations, and let me tell you, if you've ever played it (or it's genetic ancestors Age Of Empires and Civilization), it can be one serious time sink of an experience. Single battles aren't that big a deal, as they last no longer than ninety minutes anyway. No, what truly eats into your life are the Conquest Modes, five different campaigns where you get to... TAKE OVER THE WORLD (you heard it in the voice, admit it!). By adding Risk elements to the whole experience, you can spend whole days retracing the steps of Alexander and Napoleon, or take control of a Native American civilization to expunge European invaders from your lands (or vice-versa, if you must), not to mention a good ol' Cold War extravaganza (yay Nuclear Armageddon!). It's a very addictive, very time-consuming game, is what I'm saying. AND THEN there's the time spent watching various Let's Plays of Rise Of Nations, just to see if there's some tips or tricks I might have missed. I've concluded that, while everyone of these players are good, they all seem to miss a couple things that could have made their games much easier (does no one know about the TAB hotkey, seriously!??) Overall, there's never enough hours in the day, just never enough. But hey, here's some ACE TRACKS from June at least.


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Spacetime Continuum - Emit Ecaps
Ishqamatics - Earthbound
Curve - Doppelganger
Plunderphonics - Plunderphonics
Michael Mantra - D#m / Gm

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 9%
Percentage Of Rock: 0%
Most “WTF?” Track: 9mm Goes Bang, at least as an opener.

Ah, this was a much smoother, flowing alphabetical playlist. Probably helps there's a hefty chunk of Werkstatt material on here, so a little synth- pop/wave homogeneity is present. The few detours into techno, breaks, rap, and trance at least help keep things spicy.

Spacetime Continuum - Emit Ecaps

Astralwerks: 1996

The whole kerfuffle surrounding a dodgy re-issue of Jonah Sharp's Sea Biscuit did result in one positive: rekindling my interest in his old Spacetime Continuum project. I always assumed it was among those nigh-impossible to acquire discographies, released in ultra-limited fashion or on hopelessly obscure labels. Well, Sea Biscuit was on Fax +49-69/450464 (among other collaborative works with Namlook), and Mr. Sharp did have his own print, Reflective, which was about as underground as it got back-when (though the lads at Ninja Tune liked them). In any event, preconceived notions confirmed, amirite? Yeah, then I learned Jonah was also signed to Astralwerks, possibly one of America's longest, most respected electronic music promoters. They partnered with the almighty Virgin, fer' crise'sakes! How an ambient techno guy got signed to a label that promoted the likes of Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim blows my mind, but then Astralwerks did lean that way at their start too. Couldn't resist those almighty Virgin dolla's tho'!

And as Astralwerks was plenty profitable during the compact disc's glory years, there's plenty copies of Spacetime Continuum floating about, making gathering some vintage Jonah Sharp far easier than I'd ever have anticipated. I haven't gotten all the albums, mind you (that collaboration with Terence McKenna seems a little too out there for my interests), a couple mid-'90s items suiting me just fine. And as always, alphabetical stipulation starts us off with one of Mr. Sharp's lesser known works, his alias Emit Ecaps. No, wait, that's the name of the album, Emit Ecaps just a couple one-off tunes for compilations. What does 'emit ecaps' even mean? I keep thinking drugs.

As for the album, Emit Ecaps, you can definitely tell it sprung from the mid-'90s, when electronic music scenes were frequently cross-pollinating, yet it's rather timeless too. Opener Iform gets down with that funky electro business, but doesn't sound retro in the slightest. Follow-up Kairo starts off in ambient techno's lane, but somehow gradually morphs into jazzstep d'n'b before shifting onto an ambient dub path – Sharp sure makes good use of the twelve minutes dedicated to this track.

And the genre fusion doesn't let up. While electro, Detroit techno (of course) and dub tend to dominate Sharp's aesthetic, there are nuggets of other genres scattered throughout too. Out Here spends a significant chunk of its time being flighty, bleepy space ambient before dropping some solid techno thump for its final minute. Vertigo has some kind of jungle-breaks bleep ambient techno thing going for it (and is pretty darn dope while doing it). Pod pairs grumbly technobass with floaty electro melodies, perfect for cruising the Oceanus Procellarum Boulevard. Funkyar could almost be a tech-house track, if it didn't stutter-pause its rhythm so often.

Listening through Emit Ecaps, I realize it's perhaps a tad too 'IDM' for the sort of customer base Astralwerks had started cultivating in '96, which sadly caused it to slip through the cracks. There's no excuse overlooking this little electro gem these days though.