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A Rocket in Dub - If music could talk (italic)
Once a space ship has positioned itself in orbit, its room for manoeuvring from the earth is considerably reduced. Similarly, once a music producer moves in a certain direction, public expectations quickly become restrictive, making it equally difficult to tread new paths. Some take the easy option of producing many different versions of the same piece (not just for the sake of simplicity). Others constantly work on further developing and enhancing their musical ideas. As one of the most active electronic music producers, Stefan Schwander aka Antonelli Electr., Pop Up, Swimmingpool, Rhythm_Maker, Repeat Orchestra and A Rocket In Dub could prove his instinct for the requirements of dancefloor music in numerous releases. Each new release was also an attempt to expand his tonal cosmos and perfect the simple, friendly functionality of his dance tracks. Yet functional (electronic) dance music means sacrificing the element of slowness. This was reason enough to open a new chapter with tracks that don't fit into the '4-to-the-floor' tempo and pattern: A Rocket In Dub. These tracks were developed without any pressure in terms of time or production to attempt something new or use something old in a different way. As could only be expected from Stefan Schwander, sooner or later, faster, danceable tracks emerged which however have nothing to do with obligatory Saturday night dancing: You can dance, but you don't have to. The Spartan list of numbered tracks is no less densely and functionally structured than Stefan Schwander's other productions: The tracks take their time to create warmth and depth. The music by A Rocket In Dub is also characterised by an enchanting lack of boundaries and cannot be fixed to a single genre or scene. Although it delves in various well-known and more obscure stylistic and production methods, it does without specific reference points in favour of relaxed functional freedom.

Adult - Resuscitation (ersatz audio)
Resuscitation's music defies easy genre categorizing by manipulating the essence of early '70's punk, the sound palette of '80's electro-pop and the dance intensity of '90's techno. Combining their knowledge and love for these genres, Adult has created their own sound that is both knowledgeable and immediate. Whether you are singing along to the infectious 'Contagious' or moving your body to their smash hit 'Hand To Phone', one will agree that the songs of Adult. are impossible to ignore.

 


Akufen - Psychometry III Remixes (trapez)
Two Cologne remixes of 'Psychometry III' were planned for long, are now accomplished. The mega hit of Akufen deserved another remix 12", since it has a huge potential. Remixers are Falko Brocksieper and Break 3000 this time, following the crazy remixes in the past by Oliver Hacke, Thomas Brinkmann and Process. Falko Brocksieper is known for his releases on Sub Static, Treibstoff and has released a Trapez LTD already which was a hit on the sublabel. His rework of the classic by Akufen is very unlike the tracks he has released before , working particularly with samples from 'Psychometry III', relying on a rather straight but funky structure. He uses the vocoder sample in the fashion of a sequence and has turned the mighty track in a slick modulating techno monster, straight forward with accelerating breaks. Break 3000's remix is a Detroit inspired, E-dancer-like remix with sweeping melodies and pounding bassdrums.

 


Antonelli Electr. - Me, the disco machine (italic)
Me, the Disco Machine by Antonelli Electr. is a compilation of the early 12" vinyl works released originally between 1997 and 1999 for ecstatic dancing non-stop. All the early 12" maxi single are deleted and are now for the first time re-released as a luxury double vinyl edition with worldwide limited 1000 copies. Me, the Disco Machine is a pure, digital sound: minimally arranged, using economical aesthetics, a hedonistic attitude, abstract programming, a crisp style and class detail featuring various dancefloor hits like 'I Don't Want Nobody Else But You', 'Automatic Music', 'Bohannon', 'Dubby Disco' and many others. This 2x12" contains one bonus track not available on the CD version.

Arpanet - Wireless Internet (record makers)
Arpanet is the new project to come out of the Dataphysix laboratory in Detroit (USA), where the acclaimed and cult combo Dopplereffekt project had been recorded. Dopplereffekt were one of the strangest and most mysterious units of the contemporary electronic music scene. This release is brought to you from Air's own label Record Makers, who quickly signed Arpanet up after being blown away by their work. It is a poetic and prophetic Kraftwerk type concept-album devoted to the revolutionary technologies of Japan's leading telecommunication company NTT DoCoMo, which will soon change our day-to-day lives. After a great success in Japan (30 million users), NTT DoCoMo are about to release their 'i-mode' cellular phones worldwide. These are permanently connected to the internet. In a very near future, cellular phone users will have in hand their own remote control for their life. All the information in the business press confirms that the technology praised by Arpanet will conquer the western world in 2002, where NTT DoCoMo have signed agreements with various local mobile phone companies. Japan is wireless. Are you wireless?

Artist Unknown - Future (disko b)
Asked to write a piece about a music group called Artist Unkown, I faced the obvious problem: who can I ask about the music and the story behind this project, when the musicians prefer to stay ingocnito? A few people seemed to know at least a little bit about this duo. Fact one: they're from somewhere in Germany. Fact two: The few times they've performed live, they like to enter in fashionably elegant white suits and white masks. So I kind of had to play detective by analyzing the music and the lyrics. After listening to Future the first time, I though 'Hmmm. Maybe they should have called this album Past, because of the obvious influences from previous music genres.' But then I listened again. And again. And again. And found out what that future trap is all about. You know, without integrating the goods that the past has brought us, the future in music and the future itself is incomplete. Yes, this is electronic music played with synthesizers and yes, there are song titles like 'The Piper At The Gates of Detroit' or 'Masheen'. And yes, the lyrics partly reminded me of the great psychedelic moments in music. But then again, this is completely unique stuff. You get an album with 15 songs that definitely shows what the future of synthetic pop music might sound like.

Autechre - Chiastic Slide (warp)
Autechre's 4th full length and one of 1997 most essential sound documents. Following up on 1993's Incunabula, 1994's Amber & 1996's Tri Repetae -- the duo of Sean Booth and Rob Brown turned up the levels of intricacy in sound processing one notch further. Now regarded as the quintessential Warp recording artists, Autrechre have advanced the possibilities of machine-coded music into all new parameters. Topped off by perfect Designers Republic graphics per usual.

Bankok Impact - Colour Over Taste EP (vynalogica)
Rocking monster tracks again by Bangkok impact... Strange to believe (after hearing this record) that Bangkok Impact's Sami Liuski had never worked on modular synthesizers before, but that didn't stop him from creating an analogue monster with this EP. Helped by his live partner and Creme-artist Kassen, he laid down 4 tracks in the vintage modular CEM studio in as many days. 'Bounce Baby' and 'Hide' are pure dancefloor material in the best Bangkok Impact tradition. In 'Puppets' and 'Let the Steam Out' Sami lets the analogue sequencers steer them in a more experimental direction, a beautiful combination of grooves and melodic weirdness. But the main tracks A1 and b1 will take over everydance floor in the coming period.

Bola - Soup (skam)
Rerelease of the classic Bola album Soup (originally issued in 1998). Remastered and with new sleeve artwork. This album still sounds fantastic, and even better following its new mastering at the Bolamachine, it looks spectacular, and is now relevant visually with the Bola image provided by Meam conspirator Mr. England. The re - release of Soup will be followed by a new Bola album." "Bola is one Darryl Fitton, card carrying member of the 'Artificial Intelligence' clan (though his contribution to Vol.2 of said IDM blueprint) with guys like Aphex Twin, Autechre, and the like, and official 'clamor-about' to many a track-length-obsessed/discographical-info-sorting 'fan'. This is mostly due to the relatively low catalogue number displayed on the label to his first release under the Bola moniker on the noted Skam record 'releasing' organisation of Manchester and subsequent 7" released in a numbered edition far less than any first year business student would deem 'a worthwhile/profitable/sensible action'. Surprisingly, Darryl's debut full-length offers much in the way of 'musical meat'; in fact it's easy to see how the life-affirming nature of included sonics could induce tearing and related body-shivers to a lot of bedroom dwelling muck-abouts with little interest in trees, wildlife, rain forests, etc... most tracks have that unmistakable ambiance that brinks on 'Muzak' (or it's E/Z brethren) while retaining an alien sensibility of rhythm/form/development (i.e. chill-out music for the non-emotionally-handicapped). If you count 1993 as IDM's 'year zero', 1998 marks it's entrance into pre-school for 'cultural refinement'.-- Hrvatski.

Christian Morgenstern - Hawaii Blue (forte)
This album can be seen as a further step in Morgenstern's development towards musicality and songwriting. Still inhabiting his very unique style, this mixture of smooth and elegant sounds and a twisted tech-house moodiness, Hawaii Blue combines a range of of various styles and influences not heard before on one album. Unlike his rather dark and moody double 12" The Lydia EP from 1999, this album for the first time reveals Morgenstern's true musical origin: the 80s. Far from retro-cliches, he combines influences from the good ol' time with state of the art sound and ambiance.

Coil - Stolen and contaminated songs (threshold)
This CD is essentially a compilation of Love's Secret Domain era outtakes and alternate versions. Bizarre, beautiful and experimental in nature, this CD is as varied as LSD, if not more. From the cool jazz of 'Omlagus ..' to the bass and drum groove of 'Nasa Arab' to the classy orchestral arrangements of 'The Original ..', 'Who'll Tell?' and 'Corybantic ..' to the drones of 'Wrim ..' to the slow sample buildup of 'Her Friends ..' ... you definitely know you're listening to Coil. 'Who'll Fall?' may be one of the most beautifully sad pieces ever committed to tape. The track features the telephone recording of a friend of Coil's explaining that a mutual friend had recently committed suicide ... very eerie." -- Brainwashed.

Das Bierbeben - Wir sing (shitkatapult)
Shitkatapult has snagged three songs for a 12" release which will almost immediately earn the respect of the directionless masses, late-punks, and post-ravers. Here we go with the funky aerobics for released reservists of the highest rank who fuse bodily conditioning with mental fixation. This happens before any visit is possible to the Portugese street cafes of your given breakfast hood. 'Wir sind und wir bleiben die Unreparierten' merges two girls' silver voices with the unparticipatory tone of an automated subway intercom to the point where all waiting passengers are dancing in synch with the chorus line. 'Sturm brich los' comes as an electro-shock and whoever dared go near the EBM-niche of the early 90s will hear alarm bells ringing. Yup, it's all about a hi-tech cover version of the equally titled Tommi Stumpff piece from a 1991 LP Trivial Shock, which the former musician actually sees as his worst record. 'Gnadenlos' is yet another Stumpff text from the year 1989 which has breaking relevance in context with the forever-current 80s hype. 'Verkauf dich so schamlos wie noch nie' could be referencing the inflation-like relaunches of past heroes and anti-heroes inscenated as a self-ironic typical German synth-pop-dance-floor-smash-hit.

Drexciya - Neptune´s Liar (tresor)
The first sightings of the nebulous Detroit Techno/Electro outfit Drexciya began during 1991, forming close ties with Underground Resistance and Submerge, 'wreaking immediate havoc on the Programmers'. With an encoded agenda and socio-political mission aimed at the world, the latest page of Drexciya's grand history is about to be written on Tresor Records entitled Neptune's Lair, featuring twenty-one all-new and exclusive tracks. Drexciya is the sound of originality embodying all the musical styles and history that Detroit the city has seen and been part of. Drexciya is music for change and defies categorization; traditionally armed with freestyle Electro, Techno, Funk, and Jazz while covering an entire spectrum of moods ranging from the dark, forboding "Intro" to the shimmering beauty of "Polymono Plexusgel". While words won't do Neptune's Lair proper justice, rootsy Kraftwerkian techno ("Universal Element" and "Oxyplasmic Gyration Beam"), gives way to G-style electro ("Fusion Flats" and "Andreaen Sand Dunes"), while jazzy freestyle funk ("Running Out of Space" and "Funk Release Valve") evolves alongside classic 4/4 clubsound ("Species of the Pod", "Devil Ray Cove" and "Lost Vessel"). Although the roots run deep, Neptune's Lair heralds an important new chapter in the musical connections between Detroit's finest and Tresor. With future cooperation and releases already on the board, Drexciya's impact on clubland is assured to be deep and eternal.

Egoexpress - Bieker (ladomat)
Egoexpress has been a Ladomat band since the first hour. Together with Whirlpool Productions they were one of the first Ladomat signings. Their 1995 album Foxy enabled them to lead a musical revolution in German house music. With Telefunken they secured themselves a firm position at the spearhead of the house scene and won themselves international acclaim. Their unique rave concept made their sound hit the nail on the head and got he party burning through the house clubs in Frankfurt, Zurich, and Barcelona. Now they've finally released their long-awaited second album Bieker. A grinding, siren-howling, backspinnin' collection of effects, endlessly kicking electro smut somewhere between Schorsch-Kamerun/Theo-Parrish-reduction and Mike Ink-acid-incantation. Naive, shattered, overladen, realistic, disturbed, and blended.

Ellen Alien - Berlinette (bpitch)
Berlinette firstly draws upon the album title itself revealing Ellen Allien's identification with the city. Ellen Allien has found the key to her Self in this international context when one considers the philosophical notion pertaining to the experience of one's person through a relation to the other, i.e. the quasi dialectic of an I with an Other. She is continuously set in relation to Berlin, especially abroad. Berlinette is thus supposed to reflect this precise experience without any pretense for irony. The presentation of her label BPitch Control also happens this way. Ellen Allien not only delivers the feeling of Berlin city, but also offers her own experiential horizon defined by network structures and the idea of autocracy and independence. Individual systems make way for a tight co-operative in the collective. Ellen Allien allowed herself little time to complete Berlinette. One should under no circumstance understand her second album conceptually. Rather, she is en route searching for a new sound aesthetic that pays respect to her wide interests, activities and of course her personality. The quote 'I demand the complete summary of all artistic powers for the accomplishment of the art work as a whole.' of Kurt Schwitters, the great pioneer of German Dadaism, could perhaps come from Ellen herself. Her artistic approach equally reminds one of Dada: the combination of all possible musical pieces such as text, arrangement, sample, and beat. Here she shows a new face which sets forth what Stadtkind started. However, the principle of minimalism has given way to a more sharpened approach which is more than a kind of experiment in the process of production.

Farben - Textstar (karaoke kalk)
t's hard to put your finger on what, exactly, makes Jan Jelinek's recordings as Farben stand out the way they do. After all, minimal, dubby techno is nearly 10 years old, and while Farben's music is far from a textbook example of the genre, it's undeniably linked to the blissed out, horizontal house of Basic Channel and Chain Reaction. Meanwhile, the 'clicks and cuts' school has popularized the palette of glitches, ticks and pops that characterize Farben's textures. Admittedly, this kind of gritty, grainy techno, or post-techno, or whatever we're going to call it this week, is by now hardly a radical exercise in form. And yet: there's something here you haven't heard before -- not in minimal techno, not in DSP-distressed post-techno, not even in Jelinek's work as Gramm (e.g. 'Personal_Rock' on Source) or under his own name. There's a smoothness, a softness, a billowing-out of sound that stands apart from the angular, pixel-prone minimalism of its contemporaries. You can hear it in 'Love to Love You Baby,' in the way the horn sample darts out from behind parted curtains of crackling static, a come-hither whisper caught on the dividing line between concealing and revealing. It's a hell of a lot sexier than give-up-the-goods-vocal house. Jelinek first combined his interest in jazz samples and moire patterns on Loop-Finding-Jazz-Records (Scape), cutting millisecond-long loops out of jazz recordings from the 50s and 60s and overlaying them until nothing of the source was identifiable, having disappeared into a black hole of crosshatching. In Farben's tracks, though, especially the four new tracks released on the 12" Farben Says: Don't Fight Phrases, the jazz samples are allowed to root and to bloom -- just enough to distinguish their green shoots from the gravelly rhythms in which they've been planted. Just look at the titles and you'll see a difference from Jelinek's peers: while their tracks are formatted like filenames, choked with punctuation and shorn of vowels, Farben tracks suggest a deep romanticism: 'Beautone,' 'So Much Love,' and the inimitable 'Love Oh Love.' It can't be a coincidence that 'Love to Love You Baby' echoes Donna Summer's and Giorgio Moroder's revolutionary cyborg sound: disco ripples run through the shirred fabric of many of these tracks. (And if you never knew Jelinek was a disco fan, well, you never knew Jan, did you?) And 'Live at the Sahara Tahoe' -- not many minimal techno producers have named tracks after Isaac Hayes albums. But this counterintuitiveness is at the heart of Jelinek's practice: 'Actually the recording is not one of my favorites. I always have problems with Hayes' live records, 'cause his arrangements lose their deepness Studio/mixer-virtuosity does not work on stage. Nevertheless Live at the Sahara Tahoe is a famous/popular record of Hayes -- that's the reason I chose this reference. Famous live records and concerts, a gesture of popular music, that stands in contradiction to electronic music.' (If you've ever been to a Tahoe casino, they stand in stark contradiction to most electronic music as well -- but that's another story.) Textstar collects tracks from four of Farben's six EPs: Live at the Sahara Tahoe (1999), Raw Macro (2000), Beautone (2000), and Farben Says: Don't Fight Phrases (2002). This represents the first time that Farben's music is available on CD. In introducing new ears to these sounds, Textstar reinforces Jelinek's position as one of the most innovative, nuanced, and soulful producers working today.

Glass Domain - Glass Domain EP (clone)
Cult classic on Clone. The very first release by Heinrich Mueller which unfortunatly never officialy has been released. Produced in 1991 and pressed on a limited clear vinyl test pressings of 300 copies which only was given away and sold to friends in local record stores. Lucky enough Clone was able to lay their hands on this classic recording before it got lost. Four tracks made by a producer (or producers?) who can be seen as the most obscurest from Detroit. Even close friends are not getting information on what he or they are doing and what he produces. Only freaks can tell by recognizing his sounds what else he or they produced (some online magazines and discographies like www.discogs.com are drawing lines from Drexciya, Dopplereffekt, Der Zyklus, Japananese Telecom to Heinrich Mueller/ Glass Domain). We think it is impossible that one guy is able to do so many great releases, but if its true we are sure he must be a saint send by a higher spirit to bring joy to this world. Glass Domain is the strangest but therefore coolest record especially if you think it has been produced in a period everybody into electronical music tried to make a dance hit instead of exploring new sounds and personal expression.

Gridlock - Trace (zod)
Listening to Trace is tantamount to dialing into a secret frequency on the radio between a classical station and a beat-pumping dance station. Imagine the haunting strings of an orchestra and the voice of an opera singer nearing catastrophe run through the filter between stations like a grater, sprinkling the few tangible shards of sound onto the dance grooves like so much ash. A wall of fuzz clips the fold every few seconds as the two stations threaten to cave in one each other. Great stretches of silence mark the dank breathing room between. This 12" version of Trace, features a remix by Somatic Responses

Hakan Lidbo - Sexy Robot (lasergun)
With his debut on Lasergun he brings us pure Madness in Sound, somewhere between Daft Punk and Ural 13 Dikators. An awesome release. Future Music, Vocoders, p-funk influences proving that Hakan Lidbo is one of the best producers around -- awesome! Hakan's signature Stockholm sound is unique, each track a gem of polished and pure Dance Music stripped to its cleanest Essentials. One of the biggest Producers to emerge in the noughties by a long shot, never fails to amaze us with the Quality and Originality of his Work... This is the Future.

Herbert Bodily Functions (!k7)
Matthew Herbert, 29, Englishman, resident in London -- pianist or keyboard player by trade. At the beginning of the '90s, he became addicted to the unlimited possibilities of the sampler. Since 1995, under various pseudonyms, including Wishmountain, Radioboy, Doctor Rockit, and of course, Herbert, he has released the most exciting electro-acoustic music of the present day. Matthew's father, a BBC sound technician, 'always surrounded himself with melodious technology'. At the age of four, Matthew took up the violin and piano, at seven he sang in the choir (we are reminded of the relationship of Anglican Church music to US gospel) and played in orchestras and at 13 was a keyboard player in bands. At school, he had the good fortune to have a music teacher who considered Reich, Xenakis and jazz standards to be the equal of Beethoven. While at school, he began to experiment with what is in (not only) his opinion the most significant instrument of all time: the sampler. It therefore happened that a classically trained musician made his first significant appearance (January 95) not at the piano or playing a violin, but using a sampler, microphones and a bag of chips. The rule that Matthew Herbert's art unwaveringly follows is, 'The use of sounds that exist already is not allowed' -- a significant reason why he will never drown in an ocean of processed, synthetic, reciprocally sampled and therefore similarly sounding music. The formerly differentiated factors in Herbert's music are growing together and have been given their most mature expression so far in Bodily Functions. This disc, made from 'new' sounds as always, is pure beauty: a loving homage to 40s standards, a transcendental amalgamation of folk, jazz and house, in whose body of sound piano, strings, acoustic bass and processed ambient noises accumulate to form an unpretentious grandeur, crowned by Dani Siciliano's ethereally present voice.

I-F - Fucking Consumer (viewlexx)
Classic late-90s release, repressed. "In the Netherlands, in the beautiful town of Den Haag to be exact, some neophile named Ferenc (aka I-F) was fed up with the same olde techno movement. This in mind he added some fairly unorthodox dimensions to this gathering, forever changing its course. With primitive electronic equipment Ferenc transferred sounds from the 80s to the here and now. And by chance, he landed a hit. 'Space Invaders are Smoking Grass' is Ferenc's entry to Electro-anthem status. Like Funk never happened. This is family fodder for dance crazes, for lovers of 'alternative' music, for the whole scattered techno community, as well as for the homelistener who likes to smoke a cigar when hearing 'strange' sounds on the sofa. Ferenc's versatile approach to music can't be measured with just this one track. His first full length album on Disko B records proves the point. Fucking Consumer is pretty strong stuff. Electro pure and clear. No nice recycled retro package. It's out of it, sails in its own universe, because it doesn't rely on others. The overall mood is well-tempered, it seems to be playing along some sound history. Next thing you know, Fucking Consumer is exploding into bursts of noise - what a pleasure. Track by track I-F demands the attention of the listener anew.

Kid606 - The Action Packed Mentallist Brings You The Fucking Jams (violent turd)
Not repeating himself while managing to tread on all previous musical terrain kid606 has treaded in his relatively short musical career, New Zealand's Violent Turd label is proud to present this strictly limited edition Kid606 album unreleasable by any other record label. Even tigerbeat6 wasn't able or willing to release this lazy IDM equivalent to 2 Live Crew's legendary Banned in the USA: a unmistakable Hyped up, overclimactic, plunderphonic gabber rave hiphop opera that lasciviously lifts voices from the familiar, lingers luxuriously to tease out their deeper meanings over ambient washes of sound,big booty beats, soulful r&b technoidmhouse, presents the shrill and stifled scream of voiceless punk angst alongside whiplash raga jungle snarerush rinseouts, and deposits all these musings on disc to be savored by the few consumers worldwide who will actually be able to obtain this album! This release reflects kid606's growing interest in the human voice as an instrument along with the need to live dangerously and not work with other musicians. His desire, long repressed since teenage metalhead induced social trauma, to work with vocalists and make their waxing wanings the jewels in his velvet settings gets full reign as he brings you the fucking jams. Spell it however you want? SPZXWYU or QVBLJIC, PROLIX or BOLLOCKS or FLUMMOX?all these words will get you points in Scrabble! But after listening to the post-pop lollygagging of these lemon-flavored lollies, your only conclusion will be that kid606 is MENTALL with a double L!

Legowelt's Classics 1998-2003 (bunker)
Legowelt's Classics 1998-2003 album is a compilation from his rare 12" releases on several labels (Bunker, CEM, Stilleben , Ghostly international) and are available on CD format for the very first time. Legowelt (aka. Danny Blanco) is born and raised on the west coast of Holland in a suberb of The Hague (Scheveningen). He became influenced with the electro/disco virus at very young age while watching all the tough guys cruising down the Scheveningen boulevard with their tuned Opel Mantas with killer stound systems playing loud obscure Italo and U.S. disco by Giorgio Moroder, The Flirts, Bobby Orlando, Telex, Man Parrish etc. to impress the rollerskating girls on the boulevard. The Hague and Rotterdam was the breeding ground for Dutch disco in the late '70's and early '80s with many pirate radio stations, record labels and obscure clubs where disco was the soundtrack for all the action going on in their lives (for the rest of the country it was just a cheap working class music). Now in 2003 you can still see the aftermath of that period with people like I-f, Legowelt, Orgue Electronique, Alden Tyrell, Dexter and many others producing that unique blend of Techno, House, Electro and Disco. Music with very often one goal... take over the dancefloors and creating a euphoric feeling like if you where ruler of the world, the biggest player in town, Mr 'Cash money is falling out of my ass', the number 1 Pimp Daddy with in every corner of the dancefloor a different girl dripping wet because of your slick moves (even tho reality is probably different but who cares as long the music is rocking). Dirty and Sleazy are the key words for Legowelts music as reaction on all the slick well produced dance music at this moment which are missing one major element: Emotion!

Lowfish - Maintain The Tension (suction)
Hello. Hot on the heels of his recent 12" for Detroit's Ersatz Audio label, Lowfish (aka Gregory de Rocher) returns to Suction Records for Maintain The Tension, a new 6-track EP of precision drum machine electropop. This is suction014. The title refers to a certain set of glorious knobs on one of Lowfish's prized vintage synthesizers, but we won't bore you with the details.... Lowfish's recent output has taken a turn towards dance-floor-friendly electro, but don't be scared of lowfish's dj-friendly beats! This is classic Suction robot pop, and Lowfish's rich & timeless synthpop melodies make these clubhits more akin to Depeche Mode circa 1981, than to Gigolo Records circa 2002, that's for certain. 'Speak and Spell' comparisons aside, this is utterly modern electronic dancemusic that is beautiful, engaging, & beyond trends. Forget electroclash, this is electroclass! Robot music from Canada. Thankyougoodbye.

Mouse on Mars - Niun Niggung (thrill jockey)
Niun Niggung nonchalantly jumps over all sound construction sites in modern music history. Between the first lunar landing and the day after tomorrow's pop music, post-organics and new avant garde have rarely enjoyed such a good time together. Sounds without bounds. Battered evergreens to fall in love with. Details without regrets. As with its predecessor, Autoditacker, this terrifyingly progressive innovation centrifuge grown on you every time you hear it. 'Diskdusk', with its elegant futurism, the wuppingly superflupping 'Gogonal', and of course the special edition of 'Distroia', the wildest hit ever to emerge from the soundmines of the St. Martin studios are all the result of mercilessly erected findings of the past few years' sound research. An outrageously mature performance that always sounds different, yet always like Mouse On Mars. Forget about your pigeonholes. To think that all this is possible without glue or a false bottom. One thing is for certain: Mouse On Mars have paved the way for a continuously growing gang of German and international sound villains to weave analog and digital, electronic and non-electronic sounds into a totally new, organic fabric. Not without reason have great swarms of independent and other tinkerers, post-, kraut-, and general rockers, poppers, techno types, and avant garde scoundrels included this darned modern stuff in their daily menu. The Thrill Jockey version of Niun Niggung contains five tracks not available on the import version.

Oval - Diskont (thrill jockey)
Reissue of the 2nd Oval album for Mille Plateau (3rd overall); aka oval94diskont. Both the CD & LP have two bonus tracks not included on the Mille Plateaux version. More advanced in its transportational properties than its predecessor Systemisch, this album is one of the dominating, defining audio documents of its era. "Oval are Markus Popp and Sebastian Oschatz. The paramount aim of Oval is to vigorously comment on the transitions in media, as well as digital technology. Oval music is about media, asthetic presence, organized sound, composed out of the remnants of both music and musicality. They are interested in providing insight into the contemporary digital audio workspace components. Whilst originating as more of a by product of theory and theoretical demonstration, Oval's music is a rich textural and often melodic soundtrack created out of cold electronic tones. In commenting on digital technology, Ovals uses their own digital programs as well as physical manipulations of disc to expose the process and the equipment: for example creating a rhythm track out of a looped skip in a CD. As with Microstoria, Oval music, whilst a by product of their comment on and exposing of digital technology, is enjoyable without the knowledge of it's origins because it is a rich melodic soundtrack.

Perspects - The Third and Final Report (interdimensional transmissions)
Statement concerning the Third and Final Report of Perspects. In Desire And Efficiency the warnings were there. It was the soundtrack to our surrender to the uncertain velocities. The point where vigilance falls victim to comfort and the surface suddenly seems more real. Hoverculture was inevitable. Total seduction by surface. Songs became empty signifiers. Efficiently packaged for consumption. Anesthetic and disassociative, it hadn't entirely worn off when the panic hit. Now the powermad have seized control and are steering us into a crash. Now we are taking hits to the fragile framework of finance and energy that sustains us. Never have we been more aware of our mortality than right now. This is why the Third And Final Report is necessary.

Pop Up - Pop up 1 (pop up)
The wellknown Cologne labels Italic and The Popular Organization have founded IPC (Italic Popular Cooperation) and launched Pop Up, a joint series of parties with its own label. Regular 12" releases will accompany the series. Pop Up Volume 1 is jointly produced by the musicians Stefan Schwander (Antonellli Electr.) and Jörg Burger (The Modernist), and presents minimal, elegantly swinging tech-tools with a sublime pop appeal and stunning qualities to rock the floor.

Rhythm & Sound - W/ The Artists (asphodel)
US licenses of Burial Mix European releases. "Over the course of the past decade, Berlin producers Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald forged a new musical idiom under the moniker Rhythm and Sound. Fusing minimal electronics with the richest and most spacial of dub arrangements, Ernestus and von Oswald found a new middle ground between Detroit techno and 70s roots reggae. Rhythm and Sound have since influenced a generation of club and dub producers in Germany and beyond. Rhythm and Sound's W/ The Artists is a compilation of reggae oriented tunes issued over the past three years through such imprints as von Oswald and Ernestus' own highly regarded Basic Channel label. Recorded in Berlin, New York and Jamaica, W/ The Artists features vocal performances by living reggae legends such as Cornel Campbell, Paul Saint Hilaire, Shalom, The Chosen Brothers, Love Joy, Jennifer Lara and Jah Batta.

Rorschach Garden - Flow Of Life (thrillbeat construction)
Philipp Muench used a lot of self built instruments and in 1988 he bought his first synthesizer(a Korg Poly-800 ). In the same year he founded The Rorschach Garden (TRG) but for a long time he released nothing. In late 1989 P. Muench, Asche, Mom and Urs founded Ars Moriendi (A.M.) to combine their different musical influences-from EBM over Industrial to Gothic music. TRG came back to life in 2001 and in the end of 2001 there was the first TRG vinyl 7" release ever (released on Bazooka Joe). In 2001 P. Muench also started PMUENCH because he wanted to fulfill a dream of his youth -- to make a NDW record ... and the story continued.


Safety Scissors - Parts Water (plug research)
In the glass on the bedside table and in the boundless bodies covering the earth, water permeates us and our world. I suppose this is why it is the metaphor we all know and love. A meaningful subject we can drink, cook with, swim in, bathe in and more. The music presented here is meant to function in the same way. The boundary between 'artist' and 'geek' is fine, yet frequently unacknowledged or concealed by overzealous intellectuals. MPC (i.e., Safety Scissors) does little to hide his social awkwardness in the quirky techno he produces and performs. If anything, he would rather admit to being a geek than to being an 'artist' or a 'musician'. Anonymity is much more interesting. Although he is the ultimate dork debonair, MPC does not over-obsess with the computing process. Singing on his latest works for Force Tracks and Plug Research, MPC experiments with camp techno. He uses these vocal elements on his Debut album Parts Water for Plug Research Records. MPC has an abstract and clumsy approach to making music and distinguishes himself from the intellectualism of abstract/minimal techno. The proud drop-out of the art school establishment pursues neither expressions of unmediated human feeling found in Abstract Expressionism or regimented lines of stucture in minimalism. Rather, with subtlety and smoothness, he references both in his unique sense of sarcasm.

Sascha Funke - 2 : 1 für die Liebe (bpitch control)
On '2:1 Für Die Liebe' the 24 year old Sascha Funke from Berlin uses his very own musical language, as we loved it on the preceded release 'Luftschloß'. His musical preferences are located somewhere between Berlin and Cologne but his own style can not be tieddown to one of these cities. He simply hovers between his special dry funkiness (simply Funke) one the one hand side and straight, minimal structured tracks with playful virus melodies on the other. After last years very successful releases on Kompakt, he now feels drawn to Bpitch Control as his base.

Sascha Funke - Bravo (bpitch control)

Sascha Funke is releasing his long awaited debut album called Bravo. It's true that the first signs of Sascha Funke's interpretation of techno lifestyles are keywords like continuity, independence, and translation. This 26 year-old Berliner is living a contradiction for all the spaces left in between: a simultaneous demand for pragmatic rationality and emotional pontification. Alone translating between these two poles is already a characteristic of how Sascha Funke sounds. It's still flavored with plenty of quotes, meaning he has a sharp nose for pop, even letting coincidence be the basis of the production process. A new belt is s pulling techno tight. Bravo musically presents a rather 'state of the art', if not conceptual, approach even when the motif of Bravo has been around for two years as the hunt began. So Sascha Funke continues steadfastly there where his previous releases had been resting. For Sascha Funke continuity is a positive loaded term that states it to be important to complete one's own path and not lose oneself in the ditches and thresholds. In so doing he also throws up another image of daily life in the techno context. He manages to create further free spheres and independence in the life-world grey zone of creativity and the collective, which can be heard on Bravo. The fact that he remains himself and juggles his own inadequacies makes his music not only more pleasurable but also the person behind it all more transparent. What he calls 'rowing with technology' is overshadowed elsewhere by the immediate and pure, aseptic production. On Bravo he then engages his path safely: that what is usually determined to be the paradigm in techno, namely a rapid rise on a bolting industry train, he counters not only as a producer but even as a DJ who works for patience and one's own confidence in personal skill. So the positive sense would see him without passion. What's always decisive for him in unsure situations is the dance floor itself. Short momentary reactions and the belief that 'techno is always that what you make of it' leaves Bravo without competition in the set selection of his record bag.

Smash TV - Nobody remixes (bpitch control)
Following the release of their first long player Electrified (BPC040), this is the first remix version. The original will soon become a dance floor filler. With its hypnotic biting bass line and vocoder voices it will make you move. 'Nobody' doesn't sound a bit like retro or revival but rings in Electro2100. The Berlin beat monster Modeselektor saws up 'Nobody' to its basic components and puts them together in their typical manner. Something completely new is about to be created. For 1 1/2 minutes you can follow this dissection process `til it gets stripped from its Elechtech background and gets planted into some kind of intelligent/abstract soil. Sonorous.

Television Set - Telegen (genetic)
This record is a collaboration between Roger Semsroth (Skanfrom) and Stephan Metzger (Television Set). The tracks evolved during Skanfrom's vacation in West Germany last year and were recorded only with a small sampler, an SH101 and a tape deck! Twentyfour great tracks had been finished in only two weeks and this EP is an excerpt from these amazing electronic pieces. Fans of lofi-minimal-electronics will be reminded of their heroes like 'Absolute Body Control', but anyway -- Mr. Skanfrom just can't hide and also on this record his unique style is as present as always!

Thomas Dolby with Salz -One of our Submarines (salz)
Salz... The project and label run by Cologne-based artists Axel Erbstößer and Emanuel Geller was built up in 1997. Nine 12-inches, two mix-albums and lots of pumping live-gigs brought Salz a lot of respect in the dubhouse-scene worldwide. In the last 5 years they were cooperating with acts like Elting/Lieb aka Konvex/Konkav, Solar Moon, Razoof, Aaron Bingle, Curse, Chin Chillaz, Alexander Robotnik and Philippe Cam. With 'Salz X' Manes and Axel are now developing their sound more into Electro-Pop, a style they are in love with since the 80ies. Their big heroes of that time are Howard Jones and Thomas Dolby... Thomas Dolby is one of the electronic-music pioneers of the 80ies, entering the charts with 'She Blinded Me With Science' that time. The original track of 'One of Our Submarines' was written and recorded by Dolby in 1981. The song is about Dolby's uncle, who sunk with a submarine during the second world war." CD features mixes from: Akufen (CD-only!), Salz, Hardfloor, Ricardo Villalobos, Thomas Dolby, Paul Sebastian, Threshold Project & Jan Kha.


T.Raumschmiere - Zartbitter (shitkatapult)
Truly stellar new 12" from Marco Haas aka T. Raumschmiere, a release that will hopefully elevate this label in more peoples eyes (and ears) to the 'buy on sight' status. The first track 'Zartbitter' is a crushing mid-tempo groover with some awesome eastern tinged strings oozing in and out of focus, and that sets the tone for the whole record. 'Bitterseuss' slouches along at a similar pace but this time it's the sound of your drunken neighbor passing out with a My Bloody Valentine record stuck in the runout groove. The whole thing is some sort of drone/techno hybrid, perhaps swimming in the same murky pool as Fred Bigot/Electronicat, evocative and brutal in turns. A no-brainer.

Ullrich Schnauss - Far away trains passing by (city centre offices)
Far Away Trains Passing By grabs you by the heart. All 6 tracks, full of heavenly melodies and harmonies, do not even think about caring about unwritten laws of the so-called electronica genre, but switch on sun after sun in the sky instead, hover old drumboxes and breakbeats and explore the more than impressive collection of maschines in Schnauss' studio. Everything works and flows on autopilot here and sounds much more like a studio with wooden floors and walls rather than harddisk cooling fans. Ulrich Schnauss? No, the name should not ring any bell, although it might sound familiar to his Berlin neighbours. However, Mr. Schnauss released more records over the last couple of years than you might think, all of them appeared in quite different contextes though. And does it matter? Far Away Trains Passing By ist the most astonishing debut of the year and at the same time only the beginning of a long story. Next time, everyone will take them serious though....

SND - Make SND Cassette (mille plateaux)
The sound of the album is minimal but groovy, SND is like Oval on house. SND is a label and artist project from Sheffield. The project is run by two DJ´s and programmers, Mark Fell and Mat Steel. Both are involved in interface design for music software and sound manipulation; in interactive media & space. SND works on experimental radio broadcast, Mark Fell and Mat Steel are programming experimental music events around the UK. The project is influenced by electronic art, programming structures, information graphics and theory. All sounds of the album are virtual; SND are not using conventional music software or electronic instruments. The group develops software interfaces that generate patterns and modify sound. In this sense the process is more concerned ergonomic than aestethic. SND are working in a cultural field which opposes centextualisations of contemporary music in an only analogue domain. The music is made through an intermixing of digital residue with carefully disclosed source materials. The sound of the album is minimal but groovy.

Steve Reich - Music for 18 Musicians (hungaroton)
Peformed by Amadinda Percussion Group and Musicians, recorded live in Budapest, 1990. "For the most part I have no interest in 'live' recordings. My ensemble has made many of them over the years for various European Radio stations and I never listen to them. (Perhaps I should.) Whenever my ensemble records we have always recorded in a multi-track studio. However, once in a great while, a fine recording is made of a miraculous concert -- and this is what we have on this CD. Studio enhancements are replaced by a magic performance. The performance is so astoundingly good and played with such amazing energy, that one is simply swept along." -- Steve Reich. July2003.

Studio 1 - Compiled (studio1)
Studio 1 is yet another Mike Ink label out of Germany (pronounced "Studio Eins" & not necessarily a reference to the legendary Jamaican dub productions), and there have been ten 12"'s on the label to date. Extremely mysterious in presentation, the singles have been released in plain covers with only the color of the ink on the labels to differentiate them from each other. Knowledge of Inks' involvement in these is pretty much word of mouth only. Musically, they consist of gorgeously addictive, dub-related ultra-minimalist instrumental grooves; this CD compiles some of the best of the 12" material (plus 5 unreleased tracks) for one incredible 72 minute blast of simple yet mind-blowing pulsations.

Unit Moebius & Polygamy Boys - The Sixth Reich - Pax Amerikkkana (bunker)
It does not happen very often.. but sometimes the message is more important then the music. Unit Moebius (which officially split up) produced together with the Polygamy Boys (part of Unit Moebius) this 2 track protest release which originaly supposed to be released with a full color sleeve. But because of legal reasons the sleeve could not be manufactured (it supposed to come in a Start&Stripes/US flag having instead stars, Swastikas). As you understand this is a protest against the Bush administration and their idea of world peace and how to achive this.. Unit Moebius do compare the ideas of the Bush administration with those of Hitler and came to the conclusion that there are simularities between some classic historical figures like Napoleon, Hitler and the old Roman empires.

v.a. - Bip-Hop Generation Vol. 1 (bip-hop)
Welcome to the world of Bip-Hop, a label devoted to spreading unconventional sound adventures, deviant & transgressive electronica... . First releases will be a series of International compilations (the 'bip-hop generation') gathering together people creating music, sounds, based on machines, mix, modulations, modifications, sampling, glitches, clicks & cuts... Creative Electronica, experimental IDM." Features all exclusive tracks from: Schnedier TM (City Clang), Phonem (has records with Morr Music, Jetlag), Goem (Mego, Staalplaat, Noise Museum), Marumari (Carpark), Ultra Milkmaids (Ant Zen, Noise MuseuM, Staalplaat), Massimo (Microwave, Fals.ch/Mego and Staalplaat). 74 minutes, packaged in fold out digipak sleeve. Much better than average asthetic track flow, standing out in the over-crowded electronic compilation arena.

v.a. - Coca Disco (viewlexx)
After the highly successfull Cocadisco pre releases on 12" vinyl (V12/10 ,11 and 12) Clone and Viewlexx finally present the full length CD album. 14 neo disco electro tracks tracks from I-f and his musical partner Intergalactic Gary (I-g) which features tracks from the Parallax Corp. 12"s and loads of fresh unreleased material. 74 minutes of non stop dance music. Expect the same impakt as the I-f 's Mixed up the Hague mix album. The South-West of Holland, just another day in the year 3000. Get in line before the toilet because the Parallax Corporation is dealing Cocadisco behind the doors! 'Cocadisco, the new and improved formula. Our message is clear: Mass manipulation due to highly addictive sound waves forcing human beings into habits and lifestyles, all controlled of course by the Parallax Corporation. In November 1998 the naïve Interr-Ference (I-f for friends) and Intergalactic Gary, both working musicians and entertainers for the Murdercapital organisation were made an offer they couldn't refuse; Either to go down with the Murdercapital promotion team, or join The Parallax Corporation in their efforts to control life on this planet and keep operating in the frontlines. The choice was easy, the result more then satisfactory. Now time has come to present to you: Cocadisco. With vocals from I-f, Nancy Fortune, Melvin White and Kaori Kuwabara, added Nicotine from Texas, grind Coca leaves from Cochabamba, Coffee flavour from Paramaribo and vintage synthesisers from around the world; Only the best ingredients are used in this product.' Cocadisco the album -- breaking the waves for a new standard in Disconix.

v.a. - Deep Tics (stilleben)
Stilleben drops of a sweet compilation of its own 12" catalogue...called Deep Tics. Its the first CD compilation coming out from the Stilleben Records Sweden including tracks from Legowelt, Catnip, Luke Eargoggle, Achilles, Monckeychop and others. As we said.. tracks are taken from different 12" from the Stilleben label plus some extra exclusive material makes which make this album a must have for everyone into electro, disco and new electronique dance muzique with a touch of those good old days. It is the first compilation on Stilleben. Strong underground music with no marketing strategy. The album includes different underground styles and hits from artists like of the Swedisch label, and if you still hesitate and think this is just another trendy electroclash record you gonna be surprised...Real analog electro funk." Artists: Polytron, Monkeychop, Legowelt, Achilles, Catnip, L.Eargoggle, Orgue electronique, V.u.l.v.a., Rutherford, Ulrika Player.

v.a. - Elektronische Musik: Interkontinental 2 (traum)
Carrying the philosphy of Traum a step further, the new annual CD compilation, Elektronische Musik Interkontinental 2 continues to highlight new talents around the world in the field of electronic dance & listening. Elektronische Musik Interkontinental 2 CD is a CD to discover, a CD that shows alongside miscroscopic structures, a lot of indivuduality, exotic melodies & more. Compiled by Triple R aka Riley Reinhold. The quicktime video is by Cologne visual artist Yvette Klein. Artists include: Dublee, Yomagaille, Off Pop, Fax, Mikkel Metal, Fotec Foyamat, Darmush, Smartypants, Robin Judge, Process and Tomas Jirku.

v.a. - Masonic (hymen)
Five years of Hymen Records -- we think this anniversary should be celebrated with a 'bang'! So for the listeners and the collectors, Hymen records present this compilation featuring M2, Neutral, Dead Hollywood Stars, Beefcake, Lusine icl, Funkstörung, Imminent, Baracuda, Scorn, Venetian Snares, Frz & Blue Baboon & Etereo Expandeum Club, Fourplay, Solar-x, Sonic Dragolgo, Gridlock, Xingu Hill, Lilienthal, Bochum Welt, Substanz-t, Starfish Pool, Noosa Hedz, Somatic Responses, Xanopticon, K_chiko, Red Sparrow, Llips., Trifid Project, End, So Fuckin' Jazz and Fanny. Enjoy this compilation of mostly unreleased tracks by signed artists and of Hymen-related artists.

v.a. - Musique Compacte (viewlexx)
After 10 years of vinyl-only releazes, here is a beautifully sequenced selection of the best tracks from the Hague-based Viewlexx & Interr-ference labels; 90s new-electro, as typified by I-f (whose genre-defining album Fucking Consumer was previously released by Disko B). "January 4. 1990 -- Hotmix crashed on earth due to major spaceship malfunctions. In order to survive on this planet, the crew started importing and distributing music from sources in Chicago and Detroit. When these sources dried up, the organization decided it was time to set her own standards. Everybody remembers the sabotage actions from Unit Moebius and Beverly Hills 808303. The second blow came in 1995, when I-f and Electronome released almost simultaneously 'Portrait Of A Dead Girl' and 'No Landscape'. The big bang occurred in 1997 when Hotmix released 'Space Invaders Are Smoking Grass'. Soon creators like Melvin White, Duracel, Alden Tyrell, the Parallax Corp., The Brothers Fuck and many others rose above the opression of the political music scene and set a standard of modern electronic musical art, yet all compressed to CD format for consumer purposes. Hotmix presents: Music Compacte, Vol. 1." Artists include: Unit Moebius, I-f feat. Helga La Blaque, The Parallax Corporation, Duracel, Electronome, I-f, Alden Tyrell, Melvin White, Ilsa Gold.

v.a. - Modulation & Transformation Vol. 3 (mille plateaux)
The third offering by music innovators of the electronic scene in Europe and the States. This compilation, containing 23 tracks on double CD or triple vinyl blends the best of electronic music into an excellent display of contemporary music regardless of genre and method, arranged and improvised, notated and programmed, instrument based and electronic, analog as well as digital. Modulation...Vol 3 again redefines electronic music by rendering the parameters playable, re-entering the musical domain with unprecedented ease. Sound machines are inhabited by heterogeneous sound material, disjunctive varieties, perhaps tones, sounds, noises. Successful musical bodes are something of unique singularity that does not erase the trail of heterogeneity but follows multiples it. Most of the tracks are bringing back a spontaneous feel to electronic music by building up a musical body rather than on the more execution of implemented features and pre-installed presets transforming digital design workplace efficiency into effortless improvisation." Features: Oval, Curd Duca, Jim O'Rourke, Blue Byte, Arno Peters, DJ Spooky, Terre Thaemlitz, Scanner, Gas, Andy Mellwig, Sidewinder, 4E, Steel, Pluramon, Heinrich at Heart, Thomas P. Heckmann, Cristian Vogel, Fetischpark, Kerosene & Jammin Unit.

v.a. - Opensource.code (source)
Features almost all-exclusive tracks from: Akufen, Jan Jelinek, Sutekh, Monolake, Thomas Brinkmann, Robert Lippok, Move D, Smyglyssna, Alex Cortex, Studio Pankow, S.E. Berlin. "The Open Source series continues.... This time we focus on an entirely different field of electronic music. In cooperation with Berlin´s software developers Ableton we present opensource.code: A selection of the finest minimal club music around, gathering the creme de la creme of a new breed of electronic producers, creating a new sound through creative exploration of software and processors. Software developer, musician, producer -- the limiting borders fade, and as separation between musician and programmer (or instrument makers in a broader sense) become less obvious a new sound emerges from laptop harddrives around the world. Like in many ways the TR909 and monophone analouge synths were essential to the Minimal Techno Sound coming out of Detroit in the early ninties, this new approach to minimal electronic club music is defined by the use of computers ans software to generate, sequence and arrange sound. Sutekh from San Francisco, Jan Jelinek (aka Farben, Gramm) and Monolake from Berlin, set the standards for the emerging style. Akufen from Canada and Smyglissna are some of the new stars. Thomas Brinkmann, Move D, S.E.Berlin (formerly Sun Electric) and Tom Thiel (one half of Sun Electric) have been shaping and reshaping electronic music throught the past decade. All have one thing in common besides appearing together on this compilation: they are all benchmarks in the evolution of electronic music. 9 unreleased tracks by an allstar cast of electronic producers.

v.a. - Profan (profan)
Repressed after a long absence. Profan is one of Mike Ink's numerous labels out of Germany. Mike records as Gas and Love Inc., with many releases available through Force Inc./Mille Plateaux. Under the Profan imprint he has issued a series of beautiful and abstract/ minimal techno 12"'s, some of the best of which are collected here on this first CD. Features: M:I:5, Pentax, Jurgen Paape, Digital, Sweet Reinhard, Gas, Mint, Grungerman. Mildly disruptive waveforms, addictive pulse beats, Oval-like click tracks and waves of organic hum typify these tracks. Essential contemporary ambiance, perfectly presented.

v.a. - The Men You'll Never See (clone)
If you've the slightest interest in today's electronic music, most of the acts on this first Clone label compilation require no introduction. If you've dabbled in disco, toyed with techno, or enjoyed any electro over the last few years, then you'll appreciate the significance on the global stage of this enterprising independent company from Rotterdam. In its restless quest for quality, Clone has attracted material from some of the finest artists from Detroit, such as Adult., D.I.E., Drexciya and Perspects, and championed home-grown heroes like Alden Tyrell, I-F and Dexter. A modest operation, Clone has achieved all this on its own terms, without compromise and hype, by allowing the music to speak for itself. The fact that this album brings together magical tracks by masked marvels The Other People Place, Glass Domain, Cosmic Force and Duplex for the first time is, for those who know, reason enough to break out the champagne. For the uninitiated, The Men You'll Never See is the ideal introduction to a world where man and machine coexist in synthesized harmony, where they talk to one another and instinctively understand each other's needs. This is sci-fi soul, romantic modernism, a 70-minute crusade against mediocrity. It's funny and funky, advanced and accessible, but it's melancholy too, nostalgic for an impossible future. This is the stuff that perks up dancefloors, the DJ's secret friend, and will remain in your iPod forever. To some this impeccable collection of seductive electro, digital funk and energetic disco may sound retro, to others it might seem boldly futuristic, a glorious rush into the unknown. In truth, The Men You'll Never See sits happily between the two, shrugging off any attempts at categorisation." Artists: Adult., DPX, Dexter, Alden Tyrell, D.I.E., Perspects, Cosmic Force, I-f, Drexciya, Alden Tyrell, Glass domain, Duplex, The Other people Place.