Various - FabricLive 32: Tayo

Fabric: 2007

*cover art brought to you by FabricLive’s ‘ARTIST IN BIG FUCKING LETTERS’ period*

First off, what exactly is the difference between Fabric and FabricLive? Most point to a difference of genre highlighted between the two, the main series sticking to techno, house and the like, while the other one features music of the broken-beat variety. That might have been true from the outset, but as the series has evolved, so too has its selection of DJs, genre specification be damned. Are FabricLive mixes actually mixed live at the club itself or in the studio? Kudos for doing so if that's true, but it seems like a funny gimmick for CDs this day in age.

Oh well. With Tayo's contribution to FabricLive, the vinyl crackle throughout his mix is a clear indication we're dealing with a proper live set. Damn but would I love to hear this one out. I'd never heard of Mr. Popoola before this, a crying shame if number 32 is anything to go by. The Almighty Discogs informs me his turn-of-the-century career was defined by breaks of the nu-skool sort, yet judging by the tracklists of his Y4K series, little of it would have stood out from the pack; or maybe so. There's a definite reggae dub and dancehall influence in Tayo's sound, which is spliff-bliss nectar to my ears no matter what incarnation it comes in. If his other sets offer this bent, I should check them out.

He’s adept at mixing things up throughout a set too. For sure there’s your nu-skool, with familiar names like Bassbin Twins, Aquasky, and Tipper cropping up. This being a 2007 mix though, the influence of grimey UK garage is also felt; and yes, there’s dubstep here, but it’s good dubstep. This was when the sound was blowing up with crazy amounts of potential and diversity, and what Tayo brings to 32 would have made even the most ardent doubter weak in the knees. Example? How about the transition between More Than Money from Sarantis and Warrior Queen into Skream’s Lightning? Those sorts of moments, mang, gave dubstep all the thrills and excitement missing from so much other electronic music of the time.

Of course, it helps to have a competent DJ creating such moments, and Tayo’s set is superb for his chosen sound. Momentum is continuously maintained, with expertly placed lulls for your breathers before coming back fiercer than before. There’s enough genre diversity to keep the music fresh and varied throughout, and plenty of memorable anthems you’ll be anxious to hear play out again.

Was This Worth The Pennies Paid For It?
Fuck yeah, it was! Admittedly I’m biased towards reggae dub, but Tayo’s set is so much fun, only a right dullard couldn’t vibe to this. I’m actually dismayed someone offloaded this CD for such a pittance. Is it because the cardboard is lightly frayed? Neverland skips when played straight from the disc (no problems came up with the rip)? Whatever, their loss.

Various - Fabric 27: Matthew Dear As Audion

Fabric: 2006

*cover art brought to you by Fabric's 'Deconstruction Of Photography Destruction' period*

In the mid-'00s, if you were given a birth name of Matthew, you stood a good chance of being a very important person in the world of techno. Thinking about it, I can recall only three such folk of significant prominence, but it sure seemed like an invasion of Matthews for a while there; kind of similar to all those Jameses taking over prog-glitch.

Of the Triple-Matts, Dear's career seems to have languished in the middle of the pack of prosperity. He's still a recognized name, but interest in his style of music doesn't garner as much buzz as it once did. Listening to his Fabric mix, I'm still baffled how it generated buzz in the first place. Yeah, yeah, minimal was the fucking trendiest shit in the world back in 2006, but good lord does it offer some of the most utterly wank moments electronic music has ever produced (and this is coming from a guy who's digested copious amounts of dark psy).

That’s jumping ahead though. For Mr. Dear’s contribution to the Fabric series, he chose his Audion guise, where he often indulged in the most minimalicious of minimal’s aesthetic. Though it wasn’t the first time Fabric tapped a producer of such ilk, number 27 came out around the time the sound was surging out of backroom obscurity, so I guess some kudos to the label for capturing the trend on the rise (unlike nearly everyone else the following year). As such, there’s some good stuff early in this mix, hinting at the fun potential of minimal tech-haus. Dubby, dark, and just enough groove to keep your attention whether on a dancefloor or with headphones.

Then he ruins things about a third of the way through, going on a tedious tour highlighting all that makes minimal-tech a chore. It doesn’t seem like at first, as Ruede Hagelstein’s Keep Us Away choice of quirk-sound reminds me of charming, cheesy ‘50s sci-fi UFOs. After that though... g’uh. Plinky-plink in Sweet ‘n Candy’s Tacky Wakeup, retarded vocals in Claude vonStroke’s Deep Throat, swishing water in Ali Khan’s Waterbomb, and aimless nonsense in Argy’s A Rhino In A Glass Shop. There’s no atmosphere or rhythmic foundation in these tracks; just sound-effect showcases, and not very interesting ones either.

Even Mr. Dear seems aware of the go-nowhere tangent he’s taken, as he abruptly shifts gears on Robert Babicz’s Battlestar, taking things into sludge tech-house territory. And I quite like this part, what with a return to groove, mood, and even an actual melody in Âme’s Rej (not yet overplayed when this was released). With an easy lead-out featuring other prominent names like Troxler, Villalobos, and Luciano, Fabric 27 ends well enough.

Was This Worth The Pennies Paid For It?
I suppose. Two-thirds of the mix sound fine by my ears, and Dear’s mixing is clinically clean, as most minimal mixes typically are. Doubt I’ll reach for this again anytime soon though.

Yes - Fragile

Atlantic/Rhino Records:1971/2003

Generally considered the best Yes album, but only if you’ve a passing fancy for the ‘70s prog rock style. The super-long, technical mastery of later albums is only hinted at here, with more radio-friendly melodies spaced out between sonic doodles each member got to indulge themselves with. There are still long songs, but nothing eating up one side of an LP record - half of one, yes, definitely.

This was also their most commercially successful album under the ‘classic’ ‘70s lineup, and with a lead song like Roundabout, it’s easy to hear why. The hook is introduced almost immediately, and even though the actual melody only gets repeated a few times thereafter, you can’t wait for Jon Anderson to sing “I’ll be the round about;” again. Perfect tune for your rock radio stations, and even better for the DJs playing it in need of a bathroom break, as the whole thing lasts eight-plus minutes. At the other end of the album is Heart Of The Sunrise, a true technical masterpiece of every band member jamming, soloing, blah blah blah. Hey, I love this tune, but I’ve been spoiled by live renditions of it, and the album version sounds stiff and tinny compared to them. That’s my bias, but don’t let it be yours! (unless you prefer Heart Of The Sunrise live as well - if so, *fist bump*)

If it seems like I’m glossing over what everyone but fans of ‘80s Yes considers their best, it’s because there ain’t a damned thing I can say about it that hasn’t been said forever. All I can offer of insight are the few little things that readers of a (mostly) electronic music blog might be interested in, and ridiculously talented musicianship probably doesn’t register too high on such a list. I should know, I used to be like that!

Anyhow, Fragile was the album Rick Wakeman made his debut with the group, and everywhere you can hear the classically trained keyboard virtuoso’s influence. A solo ditty with Cans And Brahms seems inspired by that Carlos character’s work, great organ sounds in Heart Of The Sunrise, and lovely piano diddling on South Side Of The Sky. That kid, he can play him some keyboards. Even Jack Black gives him a nod of approval in School Of Rock, and that guy’s only known for stupid-fun cock rock! (also of note: Roger Dean’s Yes artwork debuts here as well, who’s psychedelic sci-fantasy style would become as synonymous with the band as anything music related would)

In a nutshell, Fragile is a fine introduction to the group and what they’re capable of on both ends of the music spectrum. If you want more musical mastery, dig deeper into their other ‘70s output; catchy hooks, their ‘80s. If you want just a little more convincing on Fragile, check out perma-member Chris Squire’s solo piece The Fish. For a bass guitar track, sweet Jesus does it ever have some awesome, trippy sounds in it!

Photek Productions - Form & Function Vol. 2 (Original TC Review)

Sanctuary Records: 2007

(2013 Update:
It'd be another half-decade before Rupert Parkes finally released another proper Photek album, KU:PALM, which received... mixed reactions. Guess time will only tell whether folks warm up to it like they did with Solaris or not. As for this collection of odds'n'sods, I can't believe I neglected to mention the Pendulum influences on several of these tracks ...or maybe not. I was kind of in denial about the whole 'rock-and-bass' movement, firmly planting my flag with the liquid funk sound for much of that year.

Oh, and celebrations, as this is the last of my old TranceCritic reviews I'll be uploading for a while. Cripes but are there ever a lot of 'em in the 'F's.)


IN BRIEF: Back in business.

So Rupert Parkes is back with another Photek album, eh? And apparently he’s producing drum’n’bass again too. Hhmph. Does he really think the jungle scene will so willingly take him back after he tried to sell out with house music? Like all is forgiven? Hell, he’s even enlisted the aid of Robert Owens here, always a sure sign of trying to appeal to the liquid funk crowd. You’d think Parkes had discovered the guy or something. Why, he even... he even...ah, heh.... *snicker*...

Okay, I can’t write that with a straight face any longer. It’s just silly to think the jungle scene would have grown that jaded over the years, although there may be a few out there. For the most part though, the return of Photek has been welcomed by the dee’bee faithful. They’ve sat patiently as Parkes dabbled in house beats, Nine Inch Nails remixes and soundtrack work, hoping he would one day return to the dark, techy drumfunk of yore. And now, after a few years of side-projects spurring interest again, the man from Ipswich has finally delivered a full-length release some seven years after the last.

Only this isn’t quite a pure Photek album. Much like the previous Form & Function, FFII is rather a collection of past and present tunes, including remixes done by other producers; rare white vinyl releases like One Nation sit alongside current singles like Love & War, while the likes of TeeBee and Tech Itch lend their hand to proceedings as well. Such a release might have some thinking ‘stopgap’, but Parkes has definitely been a busy boy recently, and his offerings on here are anything but rushed fillers.

In fact, you’d almost think this was a proper album from the opening three tracks, although slightly more in a commercial vein. Industry Of Noise finds those rock collaborations still on Parkes’ mind, while Love & War is as smooth a slice of sultry d’n’b as anything from the genre’s 90s heyday. And yes, Robert Owens does make his obligatory cameo here on Things, but considering Photek pretty much did introduce the house legend to junglists everywhere, another collaboration is only right. Besides, the tune’s mint!

From here, FFII lays out banging track after banging track, and not once falters (well, one stumble, but I’ll get to that in a bit). Parkes unearths long-lost gems like One Nation and Saturated Hip Hop, but new offerings such as Deadly Technology and The Beginning easily hold their own too; drum patterns are gripping, with basslines rumbling with just as much authority as ever. And if you were ever a fan of the more paranoid aspects of Photek productions, Full Spectrum Dominance’s talk of cyber espionage will certainly grab your attention, should the intense beats in this track not pummel you into submission beforehand.

For the most part, the remixers hold their own too, with only DJ Die and Clipse being the weak link here by turning in a rather cornball liquid funk outing on Thunder. Everyone else is in top form though; heck, TeeBee’s go on the rare-ish Ni Ten Ishi Ryu is just as good as anything Parkes did when the track was first released a decade ago.

There is a quibble to be had with FFII though, but it has to do more with Parkes as a producer than the actual music on hand. For as solid of a collection of jungle as this is, one can’t help but feel that Photek isn’t quite as far in the lead of the pack as he once was. Whether doing his own thing in the mid-90s or branching out into other genres at the turn of the century, you always had the sense that Parkes was operating on a totally different level than your standard d’n’b maestro. Here, it sounds more like he’s following the trends rather than spearheading them.

Still, even if he is more of a follower than a leader now, his wily veteran sense of the scene will undoubtedly keep him in the minds of junglists should he be here to stay this time. And even if the next proper Photek album finds Parkes trying his hand at, say, psychedelic minimal electro-prog, I’m sure fans will be far more willing to forgive him for it this time should he continue to produce d’n’b as solid as this on the side.

John '00' Fleming - For Your Ears Only

React: 2000

This John Fleming guy, he's done well for himself. Never mind he kicked a bout of lung cancer in the crotch, but he rekindled his music career afterward, taking it to heights he hadn't seen prior. He also snagged a long-term deal with the Euphoria series, staking a claim in the overcrowded trance DJ mix market by being one of the few who'd mix in psy along with the regular stuff. Before then though, Mr. '00' released a couple relatively unknown mixes for various labels, this For Your Ears Only on React perhaps the most prominent of the bunch.

The double-CD looks very much a product of its time, with a cover aping the Designer's Republic aesthetic that was quite popular with EDM releases in the year 2000. And the first disc? Progressive trance for the most part, though very few classics, at least that I'm familiar with. In fact, most of the names on CD1 are new to my eyes, with only the last clutch of producers - Airwave, Paul van Dyk, and BT - being obvious names for a mix such as this. Heck, even their tracks aren't terribly obvious. I can't recall hearing Alone In The Dark or Namistai at any point in the last number of years, much less when they were new. What I'm sayin' here is CD1 is a solid enough mix, but nothing remarkable either. Functional progressive trance, which is perfectly fine for a Year 2000 set.

Check that: it's a remarkably bangin' progressive trance set, the sort of tempo typically reserved for CD2 of releases such as these. How can Mr. '00' build upon it for the next bit? By going total cheddar, it seems. Seriously, that first track, Free, is about as generic vocal trance could get back in the day. Total fluff piece, and such a weak way of opening the second disc. Who even made this- oh. Um...

Well, ol' John was getting his career back in order at this point, so I guess some compromises were required. And like it or not (I fucking hated it), epic-corn trance was popular at the turn of the century. It'd be a number of years before he'd team up with the likes of the Digital Blonde anyway, taking his sound closer to the psy vibe many of his current followers enjoy. In the meanwhile, we have to endure more anthem-schlock, culminating in one of those annoying-cloying Dutch tunes but five tracks in. God, that's stupid. Who even made this Electra- oh. Um...

Okay, I'm just goofing. And J00F does come correct with a little goa shortly afterward, almost as though he used the fluffy stuff early to lure the kids in before unleashing some Astral Projection on their asses (in two tracks, no less!). If you're a recent fan of Mr. '00', For Your Ears Only may not be your cup of chamomile, but it won't hurt your collection if you're gathering all he's released either.

The Fabric Project (on a budget)

Here’s the scoop. Shortly after posting those two Fabric reviews, I decided to go about gathering more. Not so much for the sake of reviewing them - though I definitely will - but to sate my own curiosity over how many of them have held up over the years. With many of them now available at affordable prices, it’s no thang on my part to start a respectable Fabric collection. So where do I start at? The best ones, of course. Nah, screw that.

While perusing online shops, I noticed quite a few were ridiculously cheap; like, one penny’s worth even. I was quite shocked by some of the names relegated to such depths, at which point a delightful idea sparked in me brainpan. Why not get these ones instead? Sure, they may not be any good, but at worst they’ll be adequate, right? Fabric wouldn’t release anything of wretched quality, right? Right!?

I still had to limit myself though, as many of the best deals come from UK shops. Trouble with ordering from the Isle o’ Brits are the ridiculous shipping costs; after all, it was such fees that made Fabric CDs stupid expensive on the shop shelves here in the first place. Even if I’m only paying a dollar (Canadian!) for one, there’s still nearly thirteen bucks worth of shipping cost. So, I limited myself to those editions of Fabric and FabricLive (because why not) that were only fifty cents. I also found an American shop that were selling a few Fabrics at a much more reasonable ‘shipping + handling’ rate, so picked up whatever they had at less than a fiver.

And which editions of this long-running, respect series were deemed barely worth the cost of the CD they were printed upon? Ah, you’ll just have to wait and see. Not immediately either, as they’ve only now started arriving in the mail (damn import logjams). Until they have all come in, I’ll carry on with my regular material, after which I’ll go over the Fabric and FabricLive discs in numerical order. All I’ll say at this point is I’m expecting eight of ‘em, and none are below their twentieth volumes.

Tony Anderson Sound Orchestra - Focus On Hollywood

LaserLight Digital: 1988

No, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke. This CD actually exists, and I have a physical copy of it in my collection. I sure as hell didn’t pay for it, as it was bundled in a box full of other music a friend was offloading. I guess I could have just said nyet, but curiosity got the better of me. I mean, just look at all those classic themes from television and film! Miami Vice! The Never Ending Story! The Magnificent Seven! Dallas! E.T.! Karate Kid, Pt. 3! Wait, what?

As I’m sure you can tell by the tone of this review, Focus On Hollywood does not have all those classic themes. They’re interpretations of them by one Tony Anderson Sound Orchestra; or rather, cheap ‘80s synth pop covers. If you’ve ever wanted to hear memorable John Williams and Enrico Morricone scores diluted into shit muzak quality, here’s the chance. It’s like the music you hear when being put on hold, or the very worst of early Yanni.

My God, even the compositions that should thrive within those dated ‘80s sonics sound like crap. Miami Vice has no spark, The Never Ending Story comes off like a horrible early disco cover, and Take My Breath Away - the love theme from Top Gun - is dead on arrival. Flashdance… What A Feeling? More like has no feeling, amirite?

I’ve no idea who this Tony Anderson Sound Orchestra is. Seeing as how Focus On Hollywood comes from LaserLight Digital, a cheapo label that’s churned out all sorts bargain bin material for the past two decades, my guess he was a studio guy commissioned to make these tunes on the cheap, and pushed out on the market for a quick turnaround. Just look at that cover! There’s no warning of these being shit-synth versions of familiar themes. All you know is you get Miami Vice, Flashdance, Top Gun, Dyansty, and more! Well shit, it’d be too damn hard to find all those on separate singles. What a deal to snag ‘em all on CD, and- oh, fuck, these aren’t the originals. I’ve been had!

The funny thing is I can’t hate the music entirely. These are good themes. I’ve never watched an episode of Dallas, but I can hum that tune off the top of my head no problem. Anything with Moroder as a credit will get lodged in your noggin’. I haven’t a clue where The Thornbirds is from (“An early ‘80s mini-series on ABC, ya’ lazy sap,” gruffs Google), but that faux-French theme is rather nice. Probably would sound great in its original score.

Maybe… maybe, there’d have been a point to Focus On Hollywood back in the day, when collecting soundtracks, scores, and themes was far more difficult than they are today. As it stands now though, this CD’s only good for a laugh, pointing and giggling at a time when such tinny production was considered cutting edge. Hell, I don’t think it even was back then.

Samim - Flow (Original TC Review)

Get Physical Music: 2007

(2013 Update:
What happened to this guy? Samim seemed poised to take the deep-minimal-tech-doff scene by storm after the success of Heater, but when this album dropped, it barely got any notice, and he hasn't released anything since. It's almost as though he made a deal with the devil, in that he could have his super-mega hit that'd be featured on countless Ibiza Classic Anthems discs, but the cost would be he could never make music ever again. Or maybe he's just sitting fat on royalties.)


IN BRIEF: Not what the mainstream will expect.

It wasn’t supposed to happen. Really, who could have even planned something like it? Not even the most insidious Swedish pop producer would have been able to concoct a track that reached across so many cultural barriers. Yet it did, and whether you loved it, loathed it, or initially loved it only to loathe it after the fourth time you heard it in a single night, it became a sensation and firmly cemented Mr. Winiger into dance music history. And the name of the track? House Nation.

Alright, alright. It’s Heater, but do I really need to talk about it here? Samim’s surprise hit has been debated and psychoanalyzed to death, and there’s little more to add to the topic at this point. If you haven’t heard it in the club, from YouTube, at a wedding, during sports intermissions, or on a pasta commercial by now, you will soon enough, at which point you’ll form your own opinion of it and render any further discussion moot.

Besides, this and The Lick (more on which later) are kind of odd-men out on this here album. For the most part, Mr. Winiger are serious house producer. He make serious house music for serious hip Berlin-based label Get Physical. He are serious about his seriousness. Heh, seriously. If you come into Flow figuring it’s going to be a collection of fun folkish dance tunes, you’ll come away just as disappointed as those who picked up The Grid’s Evolver looking for more banjos.

Admittedly though, it takes a degree of daftness on his part to make the trend-house brigade accept the accordion as a respectable instrument. It may merely be a sample of an old Columbian tune, but it was still genius on Samim’s part to resurrect it. The man’s got talent and it’s felt throughout Flow, even if he mostly restricts himself to a minimal style.

What he concocts within those narrow genre margins is quite nice for the ears. He constantly keeps his rhythms shifting with simmering funk while warm bass bobbles about. Of course, this being minimal, it’s all unobtrusive and given plenty of space for effects to tinker between the gaps. Tech influences mix up with natural sounds, creating sonic textures that tickle pleasantly at the psyche. Forcedfeedback is especially enticing at this, coming off like a night at some German techno club with an Indian jungle lurking just outside the entrance. Ultimately, Flow is a great headphone album.

However, beyond music for lounging about in the evening, it doesn’t offer much more. Springbreak has some deep sexy vibes going for it, but it can’t compare to the sweatbox hedonism of its New York counterparts it obviously draws influence from. Intro is a fine enough offering of sun-kissed organic chill, but doesn’t stir the soul in any significant way. Zleep does the bog-standard murky monotone Berlin techno thing (with all the requisite hi-hat effects), but much of the stuff from Minus is done more effectively. And whereas tracks like Blackdeath and Ukaka are mildly funky, a typical Olav Basoski cut out-funks them within a minute. Mind, it’s not like Samim is trying to outdo them by any stretch but his minimal aesthetic is too restrained to create truly thrilling dance music. For instance, on one of the few instances of him letting wildly loose - Setupone - the potential for something exhilarating comes up short; the Latin-infused builds are wonderful, but the track seems timid to ratchet the energy higher afterwards, relegating the cut to the ‘really good’ camps rather than the ‘wicked awesome’ ones. This typical restraint makes the inclusion of a track like Heater all the more welcome, as it offers Flow some much needed light-heartedness. However, it’s final cut The Lick that’ll have you pulling a full double-take, wondering if this is even the same album. Whereas Heater may encourage hoe-downs, The Lick will encourage you to get down on a ho; all the playa’ stylee of modern r’n’b, yet delivered with enough self-awareness to let you in on the joke. Samim could have used more moments like this to liven up his debut.

However, Flow is mostly an album that has the minimal faithful in mind and remains quite easy-breezy in that regard. If you disliked Heater but mostly enjoy minimal, you’ll dig this album. If you loved Heater but can’t stand minimal, you’d be better off with a Ministry Of Sound compilation the track’s been featured on (there’s been about a dozen of them already). The rest who meet somewhere in the middle will find Flow a nice sit-at-home disc.

Zenith - Flowers Of Intelligence

The Music Cartel: 1999

It almost seems like an accident. After a few years making acid techno and trance under various guises for various labels, Federico Franchi brought his Zenith moniker over to IST Records, they of the kick-ass mushroom logo. A sub-label of American hardcore outlet Industrial Strength Records, it made sense for Mr. Franchi to follow suit in what he offered them. The ensuing EP, titled The Flowers Of Intelligence, suddenly became an instant classic within hardcore circles, and the vinyl it was pressed upon a highly sought after piece of hardware for any discerning IST follower and bosh-head. The reason for this, as far as I can tell, is due to the melodies employed within the tracks, spritely counterpoints to the abrasive acid and thudding kicks in a genre that shuns any and all moments of melancholy. Okay, it’s essentially the same sort of thing that Aphex Twin was doing when he started on his ‘drill’n’bass’ style, but for the hardcore scene, Zenith’s music was fresh and unique.

Fair enough, but this curious tale doesn’t end with a much-beloved piece of rare-ish vinyl. A few years after that EP’s release, demand was high enough to warrant a proper album release. But IST don’t do CDs, mang. Enter The Music Cartel, a label more known for trippy, stoner rock and metal than anything electronic orientated. They did dabble in industrial music though, and Zenith’s work suggested an influence from that scene’s noisy, coarse aesthetics. Good enough for a proper release on their label, so the Flowers Of Intelligence was brought on over, with various other unreleased tracks in Mr. Franchi's backlog rounding things out to proper long-player length.

The result we have is an interesting mix of gabber beats, touching melody, and rough mastering. It's hard to tell whether the low-fi quality of this music was intentional or not; again, maybe a happy accident. Part of the appeal in the industrial aesthetic is how it takes conventional music and warps it into a parody of itself. Enjoy thundering 909s? Now they're diluted to such a point you feel their intent, but not their power. Haunting winds and mournful synths are abstracted such that they turn into something mysterious and puzzling. It's these attributes that gives Flowers Of Intelligence a degree of class you'd never find in regular hardcore circles, and wound up getting Zenith noticed by the IDM crowds. Say, he makes some interesting stuff, kinda in a retro-Warp sort of way. What else has he made- oh my God! What’s this hardstyle nonsense?

Flowers Of Intelligence isn’t likely to blow anyone away who’s digested the entire works of Richard D. James, as Zenith’s song craft primarily relies on extended loops fed through effects. They are catchy loops though, especially so if you enjoy crunchy acid or trancey hooks. Hell, the tunes are worth a look-see just to find out why they were so highly sought after back in the day. It’s definitely a cut above your typical hardcore schlock.

Khooman - Is A Flexible Liquid (Original TC Review)

Ajana Records: 2007

(2013 Update:
I had a tough time with this one, as I didn't much care for the music; however, because I received it as a promo package at a time when TC wasn't getting many, I didn't want to go into full snark mode. Don't bite the hand that feeds you, right? The result is probably one of the most 'political' reviews I ever wrote.

Turns out Khooman's still producing, self-releasing dark psy and the like on his own Darkaplugga label. Huh, I think I actually prefer the music on this album over that. Stay chill, man.)


IN BRIEF: Flexible indeed.

Psychedelic chill music seems to be one of those funny genres producers either get or don’t. When on form, they can create music that tickles the mind, moves the heart, and warms the soul. However, those who miss the mark often do so horribly, with compositions that are crummy, cliché, hackneyed, empty, and poo. There’s little middle-ground, so I am surprised when I do come across such a release.

Mr. Khooman (or Mr. Edward Trunov to the Russian government) falls into this unwonted realm of adequacy. During its playing time, Is A Flexible Liquid rarely moved me in a way some of the greats of trippy downbeat electronics has. On the other hand, it at no point made me roll my eyes in contempt, or other reflexive actions usually reserved for scouse house. It’s as though Khooman has tapped into a spring of perfunctory competence with his music. A welcome sign of restraint in never overreaching his apparent capabilities is present, but at the same time the music on hand remains moderately quaint.

Wait, is this right...?

See, right this moment, I’m listening to track number two - titled Helpless - and it’s taken a bunch of what I just typed up there and made me reconsider. Interesting percussion, nifty sounds, alluring atmosphere - it’s a nice little slice of psy chill. Did I really come away from first impressions with an overall feeling of ‘meh’?

And much of this album goes in this manner. Perspectives of it flip-flop more-so than politicians clinging to power. The follow-up track to Helpless - Below The River Flows - is a great example of this, and within the opening minute no less! Half the sounds Khooman uses aren’t terribly good, coming off a bit amateurish in production. Yet right beside them are lovely synth sweeps and fine effects. Just as soon as I’m about to write the track off, I’m caught up in it again. Back and forth, back and forth, this track goes, and I’m at a loss which way my overall impression of it is left at. This is why Khooman seems to be so effective at making middle-of-the-road music. There’s a kind of tug-o-war between your opinions of ‘yes!’ and ‘meh...’ A New View and It's Only Dust On The Road are quite indicative of this too.

Still, he does hit the positive more often than the negative in the production department. The only trouble here is many of his ideas tend to follow long-beaten paths tread by psy chill artists. Of course, it’d be silly to expect a revolutionary groundbreaking masterpiece in a debut album but the fact remains much of this may seem overly familiar.

Does this mean you should ignore this album altogether then? Nah, of course not. There are some good tracks to check out. The aforementioned Helpless, as well as the hypnotizing Shaman Desert, are fine examples of moody somber psy chill. The highlight, though, is Let Me Out. Here Khooman hits all the right buttons, mixing up groovy dubbed-out rhythms, synthy sounds, and exotic atmospherics into a perfect blend of downbeat music. It’s like Banco de Gaia meets Audio Science (yes, I know Audio Science are a relatively obscure reference; just trust me on this).

All in all, Khooman’s debut should satisfy fans of psy chill. While not brilliant, nor is it bad. If anything, the title of his album is quite apt, as you’ll undoubtedly find your opinions of it flexing this way and that. Is A Flexible Liquid may not be an essential pick-up for your psy chill needs but it is a safe one.