Olento

Mika Vainio as Ø, in one of his most decent experimental excursions, out in Sähkö Recordings.

It was also one of the first of its kind that I got to know - I mean this cold, post-industrial, post-ambient, post-techno electronic-something; call it what you want. I call it the sound of a neon light going nuts with a beat. Actually, my PC went mental just before and it took me some time to realize that something was wrong. No kidding. Admittedly, this one fits better into the 'Isolationism' niche, compared to the industrial-influenced noise walls of his other projects. There are also a couple of extremely minimalistic crispy techno tracks; beats are thin and right in the front, while ambient sounds barely appear, only to return where they were buried in the deep.

To make harsh and scarce noises like these sound interesting it needs a certain talent and none of us can deny his. But I don't really follow his numerous releases and collaborations; I've seen Panasonic live a couple of times and had a good time but didn't go crazy. And I watched him play reggae 7"s under the Sonar chillout tent once, one deck, no headphones; the music was great, but he wasn't. Anyway, I'd like to check them all in their earlier rave/tech phase, before they messed up with the art crowd. pHinnWeb might have something to say about that time.

Tip: even if you think you won't like the album much, check the tracks 'Stratostaatti' and 'Ilta', or simply the intro 'Oleva' (which btw seems to also be the title of his last album). But be warned. This album needs its own time; and silence. Don't try it on headphones in a bus, for example.

Ø - 1996 Olento
Info here.

Compare his techno side with the Riou album posted here. More Ø here.