Ornament - Bleu

Cyan Music: 2004

Yep, it's been another round of used CD buying for yours truly, though I went about it in a different manner this time. I feel stupid for not realizing this before, but you can browse through a third-party store's inventory at Amazon like you're flipping through racks in a shop. There's a danger, however, in that the temptation for blind purchases increases exponentially. Well, it does for me anyway. I'm like a moth to a flame whenever I see a cover with interesting artwork. So long as I have a vague idea of what kind of music's within, I'll drop a few dollars for a gamble.

A quick check of Ornament’s Bleu at Discogs provided me with all the info I needed, the Recommendations list suggesting the likes of Shpongle, Ott, and assorted Ultimae releases. I’m sold. Wait a couple weeks, and voila, let’s see if this turned out alright.

Elgarhythms, the opening track, seems promising. Laid back vibe, dubby sounds ...almost Balearic in tone, which is odd considering the winter wonderland on the cover. As the song progresses, I’m starting to worry. There isn’t anything about it that strikes me as bad, yet if feels like we’re treading paths well worn by the likes of Bill Laswell, and rather substandard at that. Oh dear, might this be one of those albums, filled with meandering dub jams that, while never awful, comes away as pointless diddling only stoners can vibe on? Nah. The second track, Hypernicus, allays such worries, with soft rhythms and droning glacial pads. It does takes a few more cuts before returning to that style though, so be wary if you’re not a fan of the former.

Yeah, I was a little worried at first, but Ornament - comprised of a pair of studio guys from Australia, apparently - do keep things respectable with their dub jams; titular Bleu in particular tickles all the right dub-pleasure receptors in my noggin.

Their exploration of expansive Arctic (or Antarctic, I guess) soundscapes is where they find their stride. Plenty of sounds and samples they use could have come off as corny or cliché in lesser hands - talk of ‘eskimos’ in To Love Is To Laugh, or the use of woodwinds, voice pads, and ethnic chants in Yehuvaroom (by the way, are these tracks supposed to be lower-case titled?). Ornament never tumbles over that edge though, keeping things classy and restrained, their music drawing you in and easing you along their motif. The closing piece, ambeyond, is a perfect capper, desolate ambient drone that feels like you’re standing on frozen ice sheets in polar night, brisk wind biting into your iced-over skin. Are we sure these guys aren’t Scandanavian?

So in all, bleu turned out to be a sound blind purchase (okay, with a minor peek). I’m hesitant to say ‘pleasant surprise’ because I had some idea of what to expect (snow covered cover... winter themed music?). Check it out if you stumble upon it.

Felix Da Housecat - Devin Dazzle & The Neon Fever

Emperor Norton: 2004

Felix da Housecat had to have felt some pressure when it came time to follow up his ridiculously successful Kittenz And Thee Glitz. What was no more than a fun ode to music and style decidedly retro turned into a phenomenon, and Felix found himself a fashionable tastemaker, a figurehead of electroclash, and a DJ-slash-remixer in demand. That scene was short-lived though, burning itself out on ironic kitsch in but a few short years. He had to push forward to stay relevant, but how does one accomplish such when your whole (re)claim to fame's based around something purposely dated?

He managed it though, not by reinventing the game as before, but jumping on a few trends that were gaining steam in the year of 2004. Disco punk makes its presence felt, especially so courtesy of What She Wants (with James Murphy on vocals no less!). There’s celebrity navel-gazing/bashing in the form of Everyone Is Someone In L.A., some kinky grrl-power pandering with Short Skirts, Hunting Season, and my god is this ever turning into a boring review.

Bleh, I don’t know why either. I like this album. It’s fun and though lacking any of the insta-classics that were on Kittenz, I’d call Neon Fever a better overall experience. For one thing, no damn phone call or interview interludes; just song after song celebrating this weird, gaudy late-70s/early-80s notion of high times on the Sunset Boulevard. A lot of people gave approving nods to it, and Watching Cars Go By somehow became a crossover hit few DJs felt ashamed to play. Sasha F’n... um, Sasha used it on Involver! What the deals, eh?

Yet, something about it feels off eight years later. No doubt there was a great amount of hype leading to Neon Fever, and Felix had turned into such a charming success story that folks from all parties were eager to see him maintain that momentum. We enjoyed this album because we wanted to, and whatever faults there happened to be were easily dismissed. Unfortunately, forgettable subsequent albums had everyone questioning that former optimism. Where once there was celebration in dusting off classic bits of italo disco, there instead came scoffing at a lack of originality. Innovative trend setter? Bah, more like lucky guy at the right time with the right people in the studio.

So therein lays the problem above. A regular review of Neon Fever at this late stage will either be apologetically analytical, or ridiculously disparaging - here, with me actually liking the damned thing, probably the former. Felix da Housecat simply has gathered far too much critical baggage in the years following it to treat anything within a vacuum anymore. Kittenz is still regarded as a classic, for good or ill depending on your stance over trashy electro house music. Neon Fever, however, is something only fans of that scene will enjoy, where ‘the larger picture’ doesn’t matter. It seemed more important at one point, but like so much celebrity fascination, you now wonder why.

Marcel Dettmann - Dettmann

Ostgut Ton: 2010

Marcel Dettmann isn’t a very important person in the world of techno, but he does regularly DJ at Berghain, the most important techno club in the universe. I guess that makes him a little important by association, but compared to the other Ostgut Ton guys, he doesn’t receive quite as much hype. Oh, there’s still hype - it’s Berg F’n Hain, after all - just more subdued compared to the likes of Ben Klock or Shed.

Subdued. Yeah, that's a good way to describe his debut album. Dark and stark? Hmm, that's not bad either. Abstract, enveloping, and spacious. Ooh, choice journalistic words there. Tedious and pointless. Well, after a fashion.

Let's get to the point. This is a loop dub techno album at its most functional. Every track starts with basic four-to-eight bar segments of sound and percussion, then repeats them for around five-to-six minutes. Then they end. Nothing more, nothing less. There's little tension or release in any of these cuts. Melody? Don't be daft. This are serious techno. Real warehouse hardware, or some faceless bollocks.

Okay, okay, it's not all monotonous loops. Dettmann does add and subtract things throughout, with neat reverb and echo effects scattered about. The bass is also wonderfully cavernous, each kick enveloping you (there's that word again!) as though reverberating off warehouse walls. Occasionally something draws my attention into the loopy nature of these tracks: the droning pads of Motive (it's almost trance!), the grumbling bassline of Reticle, or the funky rhythm of Captivate. Plus, the roomy sound design gives those with quality audio equipment much to gush about. It makes all that money I sprung for Sennheiser 650s, HeadRoom Micro Amp, and HeadRoom Micro DAC seem worth it. Mind, so does a lot of music now, and they also sound okay coming from my shit Acer whocareswhatmodel computer speakers. Not the stuff on Dettmann though, but that's a pointless argument as these tracks were clearly made with techno fetishists in mind, proper listening gear and all.

I've heard Dettmann's regarded as a better EP producer, and if this release's anything to go by, I firmly agree with that assessment. Despite the presence of an intro and an outro, this is not structured as an album; no narrative, no flow. Perhaps a little rise in energy as it progresses, but you could play these in random order and the listening experience wouldn't change much. Dettmann's a collection of singles, with him coming off as the very epitome of a DJ-producer who knows exactly what works for the dancefloor, but not so much for a home listening experience.

There's still some enjoyment to be had playing this at home, if anything for the sound design. Essential listening though? Not at all, no matter what the Ostgut Ton cult proclaim. Then again, even they seem to have already forgotten about this release, creaming their shorts over the latest Shed or Klock material instead. They are very important persons in the world of techno, after all.

Venetian Snares - Detrimentalist (Original TC Review)

Planet Mu: 2008

(2012 Update:
This was one of the albums that helped get me out of a writing funk I had in 2008, where I went nearly two months without contributing anything to TC. I think I made a big, melodramatic deal about not "having anything left to say" or some bullshit like that to explain my absence.

Detrimentalist has gone on to be a handy bit of ammunition for many forum arguments over 'awesome intense musics'. I've put many a bro-stepper into place by throwing Eurocore MVP and such in their faces. y0 betta' recognize, son!)


IN BRIEF: You thought this shit was easy?

As Venetian Snares, Aaron Funk has spent the last decade assaulting ears with all kinds of noisy glitchcore, gabber, and drill’n’bass productions, in the process building up a sizable following of aficionados for that sort of thing. Thus, whenever the curious inquire about the genre, Funk’s name is one that is oft repeated. What they’re usually stunned to discover, though, is there is more to the Venetian Snares moniker than distorted beats and scattershot rhythms. Modern classical compositions, chip-tunes, sprinklings of trip-hop and whatnot – it’s certainly an eclectic discography, and with something like “332” disparate albums (though realistically more like a dozen), trying to dive into Venetian Snares new can seem like a terrifying proposition.

So it’s just as well we bring our attention to his latest full-length, Detrimentalist; after all, if you’re looking to get your feet wet, it might as well be something relatively current. And fortunately for the fearful, this album is probably among his most accessible. Like so many, Funk has been bitten by early 90s nostalgia. And like his fellow IDM screwbars and nutballs, this also means dedication to old school hardcore rave. Ragga jungle! Hoovers! Big riffs! Oh shit, yes!

But allow me to reign in my unapologetic enthusiasm for the moment, as there’s more going on here than a simple love-in. This is, after all, Venetian Snares, and the project from Winnipeg never would have gained a well-deserved reputation without providing music that’s oftentimes compelling head-music. For sure, Dentrimentalist has old school vibes bursting at the seams, but when coupled with glitchy noise, confounding time signatures, and spastic breakcore, you have something that’s wholly unique in the process.

To put it bluntly, this some next level shit, motherfuckers! Ragga rave-jungle squared. Beats and patterns that are at once chaotic and infectious. An audio assault you can barely handle, yet crave more once the track ends. There’s acid, hip-hop samples, rhythmic drops that’ll have you moving like you’re suffering from an epileptic seizure. Leonard Nimoy going on about how his eyes and heart are flame (Koonut-Kaliffee lifts a nifty lengthy sample from an old Star Trek episode; the use of “I burn” is especially mint!). Screechy gabber will bludgeon your brain and you’ll thank Funk for it. One of the most common clichés in dance music reviews is that a track will “destroy a dancefloor” but some of the material off Detrimentalist could probably cause mass chaos, were it not for those good-time ecstatic rave riffs keeping a smile on your face.

Eh? Is all this talk of intense rhythms too much for you? Well if so, you could always scurry over to the deadmau5 stage, where you’re guaranteed a clap every second beat and not much else. Still, despite Funk ably holding his frenetic beats together, there are points where it does fly off the rails, and you begin to wonder if he’s about to loose all sense of direction. Flashforward in particular comes off wholly wayward, not only sounding misplaced on the album but directionless overall; as though Funk couldn’t resist throwing in a ‘breakcore-for-breakcore-sake’ track. Detrimentalist needs more of those snappy reggae notes found in Eurocore MVP, not less.

The final two tracks also stray from the general theme Detrimentalist tends to maintain, in that they are more along the lines of some of Venetian Snares‘ previous material. Bebikukorica Nigiri is all chip-tune bleeps, classical chords, and skitter-breaks, and fun in its own unique way. Finally, Miss Balaton dips into analogue ambient waters and orchestral strings before engaging us with rather subdued breakcore, providing us with a relatively soothing bit of music to ease us out of the intensity the rest of the album bombarded us with. Allow me to just add here that I am continuously amazed by these IDM producers’ yin/yang capabilities - they create some of the most ruthlessly noisy music out there, yet will often deliver incredibly gorgeous synth textures within the same album.

So, if you’re still wondering whether Detrimentialist is worth your time, the answer is a definite yes. Even if the notion of drill’n’bass and breakcore seems scary and absurd, this here new album from Venetian Snares should cure you of such concerns. Funk has thrown in more than enough inviting classic EDM conventions to draw in the most cynical of IDM detractors, all the while maintaining his signature complexity throughout.

Kraftwelt - Deranged In Space

Hypnotic: 1996

If you got through some of my earliest shit reviews, you may have noticed a minor gush over the name Audio Science. A four-piece group from Germany, they were one of the better hard trance acts of the early 90s, and seeing their name crop up on a Hypnotic Records release suggested at least some quality would be found within. They had another project too; an electro act named Kraftwelt that very much was inspired by that other ‘kraft’ German group that made it big in the 70s.

Electro was going through some lean times in the middle of the 90s. Though a few acts like Jedi Knights and Aux 88 kept it afloat, it’d take until the latter end of that decade before a proper revival occured. I can see Kraftwelt treating their project as nothing more than a fun tribute side-project but, for some reason, Hypnotic Records got behind it to an almost unprecedented level. Maybe they just really, really loved their covers on the Tribute To Kraftwerk CD?

So a whole album of fresh material was commissioned, and to promote it Hypnotic released this disc as the lead single. Fair enough, but were a dozen remixes necessary? Good lord, even the classics of dance music take years to acquire that many to their name, and here’s Hypnotic tossing out twelve in the first shot.

As you can imagine, Deranged In Space isn’t a great package. Hypnotic relies on artists signed to them (or parent label Cleopatra), and few were major names, even within the niche genres they covered. Kinder Atom, Zero Gravity, Surface 10, Coercion, and Space Ship Eyes mostly stick to spacey electro, while Leæther Strip and Virex take the EBM road. The remixes are fine for the most part, but it does grow tedious repeatedly hearing the same samples and pieces culled from the original Deranged.

Three cuts do stand out though. First, The Path is a totally different track, sounding like a proper nu-Kraftwerk track that suites the whole project. At the other end of the spectrum is the Controlled Bleeding remix, a glorious mess of a cut that befits the noisy bastards they are - it’s like hearing Deranged fed through a number cruncher, then expunged back into your face as digital vomit. Awesome! Finally, Überzone provides a rub, doing his chemical breaks thing, though rather subdued for his style (the Interfaith Super 8 Remix is probably closer to what folks would expect). ‘zone’s done better, but it did get featured on the old MTV show Amp, so there’s that. Man, Hypnotic must have pushed the hell out of this single.

If you’re curious about this project, you’re likely better off picking up one of the two Kraftwelt albums instead of picking up Deranged In Space. It could have been a respectable EP with half the content, but trying to milk a full remix album out of one relatively unknown song is bonkers. Oh, Hypnotic, always doing more than you should.

Scott Stubbs - The Depths Of Progressive Trance

Topaz: 1999

When starting a new dance label, it's usually a good idea having a prominent DJ or two as a figurehead promoting releases. Sometimes, like John Digweed or Markus Schulz, they'll double as management. Other times, the DJ will simply be a hired gun, like Ferry Corsten was for Ministry Of Sound, or Scott Stubbs was for Topaz Records. Wait, who?

Apologies for that lame lead-in, but those were the thoughts swirling in me brain-pan while re-listening to this CD, and dammit, I only have an evening to write these. I can't be bothered to do that much back-checking into the relationship between Stubbs and Topaz, so I'm going with a gut feeling, on account ol' Scott had several mix CDs released on the label when it started out. I assume he was a hired gun, as info regarding Topaz has dried up when it folded around 2005, whereas Stubbs' career as a Las Vegas resident has carried on regardless.

Topaz itself began as a promising American-based label featuring trance, back in the glorious time when trance was at its commercial peak (that's the year 2000, kids). They roped in a few other well-regarded names like Blue Amazon and some Platipus distribution, but their primary focus was centred around US DJs that were just as good as any of the big UK jocks at playing out progressive trance. Noble intents for sure, and their first few releases hinted they'd offer competition against the likes of Renaissance. Sweet deal for those tired of paying import prices on such music!

This debut mix for Topaz and Stubbs catches progressive trance at the flashpoint of the genre's shift into the dark, dubby sound that would come to encompass 'prog' in the early '00s. Not surprising, as the opening clutch of tracks feature names largely responsible for that direction (Mara, Dominion, Bill Hamel, and Chris Fortier). The mix does pick up midway though, bringing in proper hooks for all your trance needs. Nothing cheesy or overwrought; just solid, energetic tunes offered by Expansion, Arrakis, Trinity Sight, and Dream Traveler. And say, do I see that Markus Schulz fella’ in a remix credit there?

Overall, it’s the sort of mix you’d expect to hear Heaven Scent near the end of, had Topaz managed to clear the rights for it. Guess it was just a bit too new when this one was released, so only ol’ Diggers got to milk it that year. Arrakis’ Medusa is an alright substitute, almost a missing link between the Bedrock classic and a prior anthem like Café Del Mar.

Scott Stubbs as a DJ then? Fine, I suppose, though certainly no Digweed (not even a Dave Seaman, to be honest). It lacks silky smooth transitions and the mixdown sounds flat, but there aren't any embarrassing flubs either. Promo mixes of similar quality were plentiful around that time, so there’s no reason to shell out major dollars for this CD.

Fear Factory - Remanufacture (Cloning Technology)

Roadrunner Records: 1997

Nah, fuck it! I get to invoke a reissue loophole here, in that all the remix material was bundled on a second CD of the Demanufacture package (plus a couple extra tagged on the end of CD1). Thus, Remanufacture is technically labeled as CD2 of its parent album in my media player list. Since it was initially an entirely different release though, I’ll talk about it separately.

Story goes Rhys Fulber and Bill Leeb were commissioned to do remixes of material from Fear Factory’s first album, Soul Of A New Machine, which led to Fulber becoming the band’s unofficial fifth member. Rather than making another EP length remix album, it was decided to give the full remix treatment to Demanufacture, each song having a re-rub to itself. Fulber was tasked with the bulk of the work, but several other tunes were sent to other producers, giving some much needed variety to the project.

I know what you're thinking. Remix albums suck, for the simple fact there's no cohesion or communication among the various remixers. Agreed, which is why having only four keeps things musically tight and flowing from track to track. They aimed to make Remanufacture just as solid of a standalone album as the parent one, and though it's not quite as good, it's still a fun ride.

Unsurprisingly, Fulber takes his remixes fully down the industrial road. Though he throws a couple surprises here and there - Zero Signal is turned into a bass-sludge EBM work titled Faithless - his work mostly retains the originals' pace and attributes. It's as though he's now the main attraction with Fear Factory backing him rather than the other way around on Demanufacture. The other remixer of note was Junkie XL, who provides two cuts for Remanufacture, and a few additional ones that initially only appeared on the Burn single but are included with the reissue as well. I've always felt he's best at block-rockin' big beats, and he's in as fine of form as ever here.

The show stealers, however, have to be Kingsize and DJ Dano. The latter goes full-on gabber with T-1000, outclassing all the other gabber remixes that were done for New Breed overseas (and yes, they're also included on the reissue). Kingsize's remix is utterly bonkers though! Titled Cloning Technology, it brings all the best aspects of big beat while making brilliant use of Fear Factory's thrashier side. Just when you think this track can't get any more headbangin', he adds another layer of intense mosh, over and over again. Some out there might be miffed that Replica's morbid theme (about a person born from rape) is essentially wiped away for the purpose of ravaging dance floors, but then that argument can be made for most of Remanufacture.

It does make me wonder how many within the metal scene appreciated these remixes. They certainly enjoyed Demanufacture enough to hail it a classic, but I don’t hear much mention of this one. Their loss, then.

Fear Factory - Demanufacture

Roadrunner Records: 1995/2005

Future Shock Week continues with Fear Factory’s Demanufacture! Huh, you didn’t realize we’re in the middle of a themed review week? Neither did I, until I noticed this trend starting with The FSOL’s post-apocalyptic Dead Cities. Of course there was Deltron 3030 just now, and Deepwater Black’s based around a future where humanity’s wiped out by a global pandemic. Even Deep Forest could count, hinting at a future where society has gone tribal again! Or maybe I just like Future Shock music, and it’s a total coincidence that we’d get a run of them in alphabetical order. Yeah, that's it.

I admit having almost no experience with this genre. I'm not Metal Mike nor Johnny Thrash, though I've had the odd roommate that was. There are undeniable classics to be found within that scene but very, very few I’m compelled to get for myself. This is one of those exceptions, as Fear Factory appealed to the 'techno boy' in me with their industrial leanings. Plus, what teenager of the 90s could resist Zero Signal, as featured in the classic Mortal Kombat soundtrack?

Demanufacture is a rarity within the death metal scene, dealing with futurism rather than historical fantasy and the like. The topics sung, growled, and bellowed by lead singer Burton C. Bell, though often covering contemporary issues (at least, contemporary for the 90s), work just as well if envisioned in an apocalyptic landscape like something out of the Terminator franchise; in fact, the band very much used Terminator 2 as inspiration. Helping them out with this was Rhys Fulber (of Front Line Assembly and Delerium fame), adding synth backings and industrial textures to complete the future shock vision. Fear Factory still dominate, but Fulber's touch greatly enhances tracks like Zero Signal, New Breed, and Pisschrist.

So the music's all around solid stuff, but I’m astounded by how good of a headphone experience it is, something I never thought I'd say about death metal. As long as you go for the ride, you’ll be swept up in by Demanufacture's atmosphere. It's like watching the opening scene of T2 for the whole damn album. The gatling gun drumming (double kick pedal!), the grinding machinery of the bass, the encompassing guitars and synths; the triumphant highs and the suffering lows, everything. I know I keep saying this about such albums, but it really does reward a full play though. Everyone should immerse themselves into it at least once, even if you don't like metal. Well, so long as you don't mind the thrashing side of rock anyway.

Sadly, it took me years to properly do that, despite knowing about the band since, um, the Mortal Kombat movie. Truth be told, the only material from Fear Factory I had was the remix album, Remanufacture, and burned from an aforementioned roommate at that. Not until Demanufacture was reissued with the remix CDs did I finally hear it in full. I’d talk about those too, but they come out of alphabetical order, so…

Deltron 3030 - Deltron 3030

75 Ark: 2000

After years of speculation, anticipation, teases, and delays, the sequel to the underground classic Deltron 3030 was to hit the streets this month. And now Deltron Event II has been postponed again, until next spring. Ergh, argh! I cannae take this anticipation any longer. Maybe I shouldn't have stumbled upon this album after all.

Oh, who am I kidding? It was an eventuality that I’d hear the project of Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Dan The Automator, and Kid Koala. When I did discover Deltron though, it was quite a fluke, coming at a time when personal purchasing power was pathetic, made more so by the lack of options in a backwards interior BC town I briefly lived at. How this CD came to be at that lone music store, I have no idea, but lo’ it was a true blessing I saw it at a time I had rare spending cash. I was already familiar with Del’s work with his posse Hieroglyphics, and you couldn’t escape the Gorillaz hit Clint Eastwood that year either, so seeing his name on the wrap sticker of an intriguing cover, I took the gamble and bought it blind.

I'll admit to some jadedness regarding first impressions, rarely blown away within the first couple songs of a CD. Not so here. The opening mournful tones of 3030, Del's fiery future lyricism, and Koala's subtle scratching instantly won me over, but when that chorus hit in grand operatic fashion, I knew I'd be in for a proper ride. 3030, though brilliant, was just a tease, as the album kept getting better and better with every track! (except Upgrade, but few album's are that perfect).

The appeal lies in the concept. This is definitely a future-shock album, but all is not so bleak as most artists go (hi, FSOL!). Corporations run rampant and unchecked, the underclass struggles, and it's up to Deltron Zero to bring the fight in this era. Fortunately, he also finds time to partake in intergalactic rap battles and chill out after a hard day's endeavors. It doesn't hurt most of the skits keep the outlook humorous and tongue-in-cheek; yes, there are problems, but we can laugh at the absurdity too. By the end of it all, Deltron's world seems more akin to Futurama than the dystopia suggested at the start.

Deltron 3030's gone down as a classic of the niche 'nerdcore' micro-genre, where lyrics and themes focus on geek culture, scientific jargon, and sci-fi settings. It's also a rare feat of musical craft, maintaining a consistent motif throughout while appealing to any casual fan of undergroun hip-hop, clever production, or unique music in general. Del was on a creative tear in those years while Dan The Automator cemented his place as a producer to be reckoned with. Meanwhile, some guy named Damon Albarn, who guest-warbled on Time Keeps On Slipping, took notice of this duo's brilliance, and got them to make a couple tracks to launch his Gorillaz project. That turned out pretty good too, apparently.

Pete Namlook - The Definitive Ambient Collection: Volume 2

Rising High Records: 1994

Pete Namlook’s discography remains a daunting one to dive into, thanks in no small part to the deliberate scarcity of his early work. Story goes he never intended his Fax+ releases to attain any level of commercial success, pressing limited runs of 1,000 whenever he invited someone over for a jam session in his studio and leaving it at that. It strikes me as a crafty entrepreneurial tactic within the ambient scene at large, all these limited run releases. Few things make tangible items more alluring than rarity.

Musically, one must consistently deliver for hard copy hunters to willingly lay down that extra cash, and Namlook’s output featured a plethora of classics and gems for early 90s ambient and techno enthusiasts. There was also a lot of middling dross, in that he and his collaborators seldom had specific visions in mind beyond broad ideas. Much of their output comes across like jazz for ambient heads: plenty of ingenuity and enjoyment for the die-hard, but noodly wank for anyone else.

Rising High Records did most of the UK legwork for Fax+ distribution, several releases appearing on assorted albums and compilations. Namlook was assigned the task of gathering leftovers into these Definitive Ambient comps, which doesn't make these terribly definitive, does it.

Though lacking any of the true Namlook classics, this second volume does feature some of his more memorable projects: Silence (with Dr. Atmo), Dreamfish (with Mixmaster Morris), Escape (Dr. Atmo again), Sequential (with DJ Criss), and Hearts Of Space (with Pascal F.E.O.S.), plus his solo work as Air. Not a bad roster, but the track selection's wonky, ultra-long pieces interspersed with short sonic doodles. Confounding the listening experience is, despite Namlook's presence throughout, there's little similarity between these collaborations, thus the flow's bizarre.

Case in point: the 22-minute long Garden Of Dreams, sitting at the third position, and surrounded by three musically unrelated tracks not even reaching the same length in total. The track itself is incredibly New Age, relying on soft crystalline pads and voices for half its run time before meditative percussion emerges. Despite its ambient nature, it leaves you exhausted, and you forget there's still over half a CD to go through. Saturn Cruises, just two tracks later and fifteen minutes long, leaves you in a similar state, though I can vibe on its slow space acid groove much better (plus, anything involving Saturn’s fucking awesome!). Fishology's position at the end is much better for a long track, capping the album off with fun bleepy ambient techno. Such behemoths unfortunately render nearly everything else forgettable, even though tracks like Duane Sky and 1st Impression are fine tunes.

This is far from a classic compilation, most of these cuts available on the original albums from which they were culled. Even the Pete Namlook ‘mix’ isn’t much of a hook, very little blending occurring between tracks. Get it if you find it cheap, but the odds of that happening are low.