The Way Eye See

Late '90s techhouse, somewhere between Svek's minimalistic house excursions and the various US hybrids of house and techno, from Alexi Delano - who has of old built his reputation in creating soulful and deep tracks with dancefloor appeal and still releases quality stuff under various monikers, in collaborations and through various labels. This is an one-off project
through Germany's Plastic City, full of lush chords and groovy elements over tight and phat beats for house lovers with open ears.

A.D.N.Y. presents Leiva - 1999 The Way Eye See
Info here.

3MCs&1DJ

And since we're into video, here's a lesson in DIY promotion by the Beastie Boys.


And here's Mix Master Mike's angle.

Edge Of Now

A speaker announces:
'Welcome to the Edge of Now'
And the menacing bassline kicks in. Then, a synthetic, in-your-brain voice transmits:
moving effortless
trying to forget
everything everything
feeling nothing
seemingly forever, while wave after wave synths wash our ears, each turn more lush and fat, a maximalist's joy of frequencies over slowly building fast pumping beats. Apparently, thoughts from that euphoric state that most people reach only at the peak of the curve of an extensively brain-damaging night. To its credit, the track ends with an equally burnt-out
moving
feeling
everything
Good times.

This is John Selway's debut solo album, as far as I know. I only have the LP of the [feis] (*) label version; I feel it fits the label's profile perfectly and that's why I used this cover (I happen to like it more, also) instead of the initial Ultra release's original. With its mix of techno/ electro beats and melodies, and with a couple of immediate hits ('Edge Of Now', 'New People', 'Digitalemotion'), it was a constant in my box for many years; I placed it close to Kiko's 'Midnight Magic' (*), and that's a really big compliment on my behalf.

I recently came upon this rip from the CD release and decided to share it at once. It stands as far away from minimal as you can get; fat, rich synthetic melodies riding over-compressed beats, it even sounds trance-like and oldschool. And mostly different from other Selway's more known works (say, his Smith/Selway collaborations). But I liked it then and still like it now, so here it is. Credits to the original uploader.

Selway - 2001 Edge Of Now
Info here.

Silentmoviesilverscreen

An album from Khan (*) through Caipirinha (*), loosely drawing inspiration from early 20th century silent movies.

I wish I had found some info on this project, but there doesn't seem to be anything around and the CD's leaflet stays totally uninformative. Some of the films I know, for the others I'm still guessing. The project unfolds in two parts; the first one ('Berlin') is a brooding, very minimalistic techno affair, borrowing its mood from early german expressionism films like 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' or directors like Max Reinhard. The second part ('Hollywood') moves more into scarce electro beats and experimental breaks territory, mentioning Kenneth Anger and Carmen Miranda.

Khan - 1997 Silentmoviesilverscreen
Info here and more covers scans here.

Downtime

This is the first Floppy Sounds (*) album; not the original Wave Music version, but the Slip 'n' Slide repress with an bonus CD of extra tracks, re-edits and remixes (by Francois K. and Matthias Heilbronn).

I just bought it so I don't have an opinion yet. At first skip, it sounds similar to the already posted one, perhaps a bit more primitive; more abstract and downtempo tracks in here, also.

Floppy Sounds - 1995 Downtime
CD1 - CD2
Info here.

Knockin' Boots

Cari Lekebusch and Alexi Delano teamed up to give us two 12''s through Svek (1,2), both of them together in the CD version here. Exquisite deep and funky house, techno infected and with a New York tint; top quality material, as should be expected after all.

More Svek records here and here.

Mr. James Barth & A.D. - 1998 Knockin' Boots Vol. 1 & 2
Info here.

A Lost Era in NYC 1987-1992

Oldschool house, earth beats, hedonism, early acid experiments and Jamaican smoke meet in this subtle gem compilation of works by the man Bobby Konders, compiled by Hell for Gigolo Records. Sincerely deep NYC house music without limits.

Bobby Konders feat. Massive Sounds -
A Lost Era In NYC 1987-1992
Info here.

Short Term Memories

Weird house and techno influenced dub treatments from Rob Rives; here as Floppy Sounds in Francois K.'s Wave Music, exploring the concepts of deepness and experimentation without losing his touch with the ground (the dancefloor, in this case).

Floppy Sounds - 2001 Short Term Memories
Info here.

Detroit Audio (and more)

Although I've stopped downloading DJ mixes and live sets from everybody I knew (it became an addiction at a time), some names are still hard to resist to.
A lot of sites/ blogs are devoted to posting live sets; I'm not actually going that way. I just want to propose a couple of 'official' sites of Detroit and like labels with interesting sets or videos that may easily get overlooked while searching the 'illegal' sharenet.

So:
Detroit Techno Militia. Huge mix data bank here.
Kenny Larkin's Art Of Dance. Few mixes here.
Technoir Audio. Listen here, down here.
11th Hour. Here.
Bvdub mixes. Here. Press on third icon.
Bootleg DJ Cafe. DJ sets here.
Open Mind Recordings. Here.
EevoNext. Yes, the old Eevolute. Here.
Soma Records. Some videos.
Dave Angel. Mixes & videos here.
D1 Recordings & DEAFestival. Archive.
Modern Music. Tons of oldschool mixes from the States here.
The Black Dog. You know who they are. Mixes here.

NEW:
Vuistdikkeramlat. Blog of great mixes. Here.

This list will be updated sporadically (when I find new stuff, you know) and reposted.

(first post: 10th of April 2008)

Modulations - High Tech Soul

For a long time I was searching for 'Modulations', Iara Lee's 1998 documentary on electronic music, in digital form (more info here). As far as I get it there was no DVD re-issue and I couldn't find a rip around the net, until now. For everyone with a decent connection, in this (new) site itechno.tv you can stream and watch it, instead of its drawbacks (focus on US stuff, absence of certain artists-catalysts, loads of drug-fueled egos, etc.) in the end it's worth the time spent. My favorite part is the whole FSOL interview.
There's also a rip from the AudioBforum guys around, though it's temporarily off. I'll try to get back to it later on.

Modulations (1998)
Stream: here on itechno.tv

P.S. The itechno site is off. I'll try to find another copy...


Also posted on itechno.tv is a much more recent (and easily available to buy) docu on Motown techno, 'High Tech Soul'. Due to its more focused subject it delivers better overall, with a lot of interviews (and bitching) by famous Detroit artists and info on the city's history. A must for techno fans.

High Tech Soul (2006)
Stream: Part 1 - Part 2 on itechno.tv
Download either here (from BetterSoundsBelieving blog - zshare),
here (from TribalElectroDance blog),
or from here (RS links).


Original post: 2008-06-26.

Digital Reflex

Another Instinct Records (*) compilation of deep electronics, minimalistic grooves and electro sounds by the usual NYC suspects.
Not exactly deepspace ambient like some other CDs posted here; less abstract, a bit more upbeat and full in sweet and weird frequencies, to my ears it summarizes nicely the late '90s Instinct style of forward-thinking electronics.

VA - 1998 Digital Reflex
Info here.

An invaluable collection of Instinct records can be found in EverythingOnMyIPod blog here and here. Great job guys.

Reich Revisited

Some art pieces to get us through the holidays. Also good stuff to try on visiting relatives that demand to hear something soft, something 'classical'... I came upon these Steve Reich CDs the other day, spent some hours with them and thought they'd be interesting to post.

Start with the seminal ECM classic 'Music For 18 Musicians' back from 1978, here ripped from the 1998 Nonesuch repress - a vibrating, minimalistic, organic monster, its movements' varying moods ranging from the heavenly beautiful to the otherwordly and spooky, full of emotions and totally cerebral at the same time. A MUST HAVE, for everyone, and it'll be for the next hundred years or so.

Then, there's a compilation of remixes by various UK and US artists, reworking Reich's back catalogue. I have very mixed feelings on this one; trying to meddle with classics like these, unsurpassed in most occasions and with such an impact in the music world, can be challenging - yet really, really difficult. Being a late '90s NY project, many of the remixers characteristically moved towards the 'breaks' direction, be it post hip-hop (illbient.?.) or d'n'b. Still, the 'chill-out grooves' mood prevailed... Exceptions to the above (and the reason I'm posting this one) I consider to be the contributions by Howie B, Ken Ishii, Nobukazu Takemura, Andrea Parker and Coldcut.
To my ears, the more recent M.VonOswald & C.Craig's reworks of Ravel and Mussorgsky sound closer to the Reich spirit.


Steve Reich - 1978 Music For 18 Musicians
Info here and here.



Steve Reich - 1999 Reich Remixed
Info here and here.

P.S.

Steve Reich - 2006 Reich Remixed 2006
Info here and here.
Big thanx to Taco, go to the 'HereGoesTheRollercoaster' blog for the link.

Stormwatch

Great album by New York's finest Damon Wild (see Synewave) and Dennis Ferrer (see Ibadan) in their short-lived Morph combo, caught somewhere between New Electronica's synth heritage and banging acid techno NYC-style.

Could say it's US trance, if you want. I say it's good times.

Morph - 1994 Stormwatch
Info here.

If you liked this one, should probably check also this and that one.

Technomajikal

Dub's most revered crazy Lee Perry meets beat pioneers Yello on a proto-techno & reggae fusion (actually sounding like it was produced in 1992). Once more, out through ROIR records. Had it on mp3, still looked for it for a long long time. Just found it, so here...

Warning: NOT a dub techno affair.

Lee 'Scratch' Perry - 1997 Technomajikal
Info here.

Also see here.

Higiene Mental

A well kept secret and a clever joke on behalf of the producers and the label alike.

Released by Disko B with artwork by Andy Orel of the Abuse Industries (that also did the early Gigolo covers) on a cowboy theme, the presentation initially made me think I'd encounter electro breaks or techno fun in a humorous concept - I couldn't have been more wrong. It's a cold, dark, downtempo experiment instead, featuring the whole bunch of the NYC-based Instinct/Ambient posse: sonic guerillas like the Prototype 909 members, T.Dupree, J.Selway, etc. with Mika Vainio and Jimi Tenor as extras, in an atypical collaboration centered around Abe Duque's label Rancho Relaxo (hence the name). The music is what you'd expect from these guys, deepspace minimal improvisations mostly (with a few rhythmical deviations), ranging from the ultra-relaxed to the claustrophobic.

If you liked the earlier posted Instinct Ambient compilations, you'll love this one. I know I did. These and similar stuff you'll find here.

Rancho Relaxo Allstars - 1996
Volume 1. Higiene Mental
Info here.

P.S. Check comments for more..

Clock Wise

Another sadly overlooked k2O album (*,*).

The debut of Dennis DeSantis (also a percussionist, now working for Ableton) at first sounds more influenced by UK techfunk than Detroit techno, despite him living in NYC at the time and releasing in one of Berlin's phattest and toughest labels (see Kanzleramt). Then the loopy progression of the tracks and the clear, software based production shifts the attention towards Berlin; specifically towards this (almost typical now) loopy, minimal, bright techhouse/ techno style eventually adopted by most americans and canadians living and working there.
DeSantis' approach is a bit different, in the sense that he's more synth-based than the average 'minimal' producer; lots of rich pads and sweet strings and melodies over steady beats, his music brings in mind early '90s ambient techno loops mixed through Live, raised on a higher energy level. Neither sleepy electronics nor techno for pills; he manages to balance the elements enough to provoke interest without wrecking our ears.

Seeing how well artists of M_nus and similar labels are doing with their recent releases, this should be a world-wide hit...

Dennis DeSantis - 2002 Clock Wise
Info here.

The Blunted Boy wanders

I remembered the other day that people had asked for some NYC '90s techno some months ago. I'm still looking for my Synewave compilations, so I'll need some more time. Luckily though I found the following, which I decided to pack together. It's by Steve Stoll, the Blunted Boy himself, the man behind Proper NYC, a legend of NYC beats compared only to Frankie Bones and Mike Dearborn.

So, this guy from Brooklyn plays techno. Tough, muscular, hard and funky techno. He's giving us the occasional acid treatment or a housey vibe here and there; but a hip hop interlude or a jazzy pad cannot change the fact that this guy plays techno. I don't know what to say more to emphasize that these are techno records. Minimal techno records, actually- some drum loops with an edge, some dopey effects and analog synth lines held together by the sheer power of character and/or a druggy flirt with the other side of techno beat. It's not the hardest thing you've ever heard; no Panacea-like hardcorisms or DHR noise bangers, no. Just non-stop Detroit infected, adrenaline heavy hardfunk of the purest tradition.

The 'Model T' EP includes remixes by Aux 88 and Cari Lekebush.
I have some more Stoll stuff on vinyl, but ripping them is not an option yet. Still, I have my hopes for a second pack later on. Enjoy.


Steve Stoll - 1997 Damn Analog Technology
Info here.


Steve Stoll - 1998 The Blunted Boy Wonder
Info here.


Steve Stoll - 1998 Model T EP
Info here.


Steve Stoll presents The Blunted Boy Wonder - 2000 Innuendo
Info here.

P.S. Check the comments for more.

Satan's Dub

Well...
Out in ROIR tapes.
What more to say?

Lee 'Scratch' Perry meets Bullwackie in Satan's Dub - 1988
Info here.

Trance Atlantic I & II

From the Volume label, in the same spirit as the 'Trance Europe Express' series.

After having a big impact on the European scene with three or four TEX volumes, in a big way defining (UK's) perspective on 'techno', 'trance' and 'electronica' and establishing/ introducing artists, the project crossed over the Atlantic and featured stuff from dance legends side by side to less known artists from USA and Canada. Of course, due to their importance and history Chicago and Detroit are much more represented here, still it more or less presents a certain picture of the then surfacing US 'rave' scene.
Many of the usual suspects are here, too much to mention (though some more are rather blatantly overlooked). A look at the artists' list will convince you. The first volume has an overall approach music-wise with a slight emphasis on Detroit artists, while the second one points a bit more towards Chicago.

All tracks were exclusive back then, though later some surfaced in compilations or re-edits.
Get them.


VA - 1995 Trance Atlantic
CD1 - CD2
Info here.


VA - 1995 Trance Atlantic 2
CD1 - CD2
Info here.

Tracks 1-02 and 2-01 of Vol.1 are not included here. Sorry.

Ambient Systems: Limited Edition

An Instinct release, continuing the Instinct Ambient sub-label's Ambient Systems releases. For more info check this older post here, if you liked that one you know what to expect. In a slightly less catatonic style, I'd say. Includes unreleased tracks by all label pets and a weird collaboration between Abe Duque and Richard Dorfmeister of K&D fame. Rare and interesting.

VA - 1999 Ambient Systems: Limited Edition
Part 1 - Part 2
Info here.

It's incredible that I couldn't find a better cover scan than this one...