Reviews (3)

Unique Ghetto Tech Hip Hop
Some months ago I had read an interview with Disco D. He sounded like a serious producer and talented scratch DJ as well. The genre is best described as 2 Live Cru gone modern with a techno edge. There are some 30 tracks on this album which are delivered in a seamless, dance-oriented way. Disco D takes some of the older themes and throws them back into the mix. As you'll read in the other reviews, the language is coarse, but a lot of it's tongue-in-cheek stuff.

Princess Superstar is a smooth, fast rapper with outrageous lines. Track #2 is my favorite! I enjoyed the other decadent divas such as Lola Damone. I also liked the edgy cameo appearance by Turk. Disco D's scratching is lightning fast - he discreetly throws it into the mix.

Other favorite tracks are Peace Out, Pump Push Pull, and Keys to the Whip.

Here in the suburbs of New Jersey, we don't have any booty bars. Disco D's album is a highly credible alternative! Unique and satisfying.

Incredibly good...Let me catch my breath!!!
Y'know, I was once like you may be now & thought of booty-bass as hip-hop's black-sheep cousin that lives in Hip-Hop's garage.
That started to change for me one intoxicated post-clubbin' early-morning in SF when my roommate lectured me on why I was wrong & forced upon me an issue of "Grand Royal" devoted to this filthy-mouthed little chimera of pop music.

This disc sealed the deal for me over 6 years after that conversation.

"A Night at The Booty Bar" hooked me on two points; the first is quite simply the music: Disco D has managed to make an exciting fusion of techno & bass, and filtered it through his impressively-honed Detroit quick-mixing skills. The album NEVER lags. I'm telling the gods' honest truth.

The second is that he has put the ladies into the mix. And they send back the best the men can serve and ask "Is that the rawest you got?". "A night at the Booty-Bar" suddenly takes a genre that is famous for being overtly sexist in the most infantile way and turns into a raunchy toungue-in-cheek lyrical sparring match between libidos-- winner takes all The Ca$h.

This stands out early-on with tracks like the bass-heavy "F*** me on the Dancefloor", a collaboration with the perennially talented Princess Superstar (You mean you haven't heard her yet!?!) , and "Peace Out" & "Keys to the Whip" ; both duets by Helluva & Lola Damone who are two of the real stand-outs on this record with their freestylin' skills.

Additional star-power comes form the likes of D12's Paradime with "Detroit Zoo" & " P****" from the Lords of Acid.

Other stand-outs include "Hydraulic Style" by DJ Nasty, "Hottest of the Hot remix" by B.G., and freestyles by Lola Damone & Solace. Honestly, at it's worst what you can expect from "A Night at the Booty Bar" is a track that is only danceable.

That being said, my only caveat is really obvious: if four letter words & raw sex stylin' make you squirm, you shouldn't get this CD.

If that doesn't bother you, & you can take this record for what it is-- just raw fun that isn't taking itself too seriously,--then you need to snap this up. And when it ends up in the top ten lists for the best dance record of 2003, remember you heard it here first.

One last thing: I really recommend this record to all you Electroclash kids who are looking to expand your horizons into '80's beats with a little more flava.

get my ass in my car...and take it down to booty bar....
Disco D comes correct with this cd " a Night at the Booty Bar". An hour or so of pure bangin ghetto tech the way ghetto tech should sound. He pulls out all the stops, flawless mixing and scratching that can test some DMC champs. If you aren't too familiar with ghetto tech, i'd HIGHLY recommend this as a beginners manual to all that is dirty dirty. Easily offended need not apply, this cd is pure aural perversion. Personal favs of mine on the cd "hydrolic style", "gimme head", and "detriot zoo". This cd appeals to SO many different musical tastes...but in the end...its all about the booootay. You'll be rockin out before you realize what hit you. PEACE OUT! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Prolific Italian film-scoring legend Ennio Morricone isn't afraid to use contemporary pop idioms in his work but usually eschews them because they become dated so quickly. That shrewd sensibility helps make this collection of remixes by an international slate of dubsters and electronica artists a bit more interesting--and ironic--than it might otherwise be; after all, what music dates quicker than club remixes? Producer Stefan Rambow (Mondo Morricone, the Canto Morricone series) also notably secured Maestro Morricone's approval for the project, giving it an added cachet. But that official blessing may also account for the set's patchy quality. A few of the efforts seem overly conservative--especially given the genre--and hesitant to tweak The Legend too much. Apollo Four Forty and Terra Nova are satisfied to simply overplay the most clichéd elements (twangy guitars, harmonica, oddball percussion) of Morricone's spaghetti Western canon, while the remainder of the set is surprisingly atmospheric and sedate. The elegant melodies of "Chi Mai" sometimes get lost in Nightmares on Wax's groove lite, while Bigga Bush and DJ Dick produce two nicely contrasting takes (rhythmically edgy and languorously dreamy, respectively) of "Clan of the Sicilians" and Thievery Corporation, Tommy Hools, and Ali N. Askin plumb the often haunting dimensions of Morricone's music. Enthusiasts should welcome these mostly fresh takes on his enduring legacy, even if they ultimately prove Il Maestro was usually one step ahead--or completely outside--of the game. --Jerry McCulley ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Moody and melodic
I was a bit skeptical, but these contemporary rhythmic remixes of some of Italian film composer Ennio Morricone's best-known pieces work surprisingly well and make for an enjoyable collection. Produced with the cooperation of Morricone himself (or at least with his blessing), these tracks work astonishingly well in their new guise. Most are too somber to function as dance music, but are quite evocative and lovely as listening music, thanks to the sympathetic arrangements of the artists involved, all of whom seem to honor and appreciate Morricone (liner notes are brief) and the atmosphere these pieces were intended to convey. Fans of Morricone's music will enjoy this successful experiment and hope for more.

groovy chill out w/few upbeat twists...uneven but worth it.
according to the liner notes of this cd, this compilation marks the first time that maestro morricone has agreed to a rmx of some of his original pieces. there are a number of standout tracks here - the most stellar piece being tomoyuki tanaka's rmx of belinda. tanaka brings in additional layers of brazilian percussion and layers them with those sweet fpm chorals and piano. this reinterpretation is beautiful and worth the price of the entire album. for those who immediately think "kitsch!" DON'T...far from it. thievery corporation turns in a very solid and typically mellow tune with a cinematic feel, "ile grande silencio." dj dick and bigga bush from rockers hifi both turn in separate rmxs of "clan of the sicilians" and both are fine downtempo though i found dj dick's a more enjoyable listening experience. nightmares on wax's rmx of chi mai is spare but effective, his approach reminded me of the one he used with his rmx of shirley bassey's "easy thing to do." no swelling chords, layered percussion, just a strong unifying beat and tinkling melody. tommy hools was the other track which i found to be superb. very chill and jazzy.

you may find that your personal preference for the remixers influences your opinion of the tracks contained here. i found myself drawn towards remixers whose other work i enjoy.

one star off for the lazy efforts of terranova and for the bad judgement in including a rmx by apollo four forty. these songs are the first two on the disc, so if you can get by them, it is smooth sailing all the way through. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Gotta Like King Kooba
This is a great disc. It is well worth adding to your cd collection. I heard of them on many different compilations I have and finally acquired a copy a la Amazon. I would have given it five stars but sometimes it gets a little "out there" which isnt a bad thing but just not a complete five star outfit.

ElectroFunkFantastic
This is perfect eletro-funk as far as I'm concerned. A healthy blend of jazz, funk, and hip-hop. I first discovered King Kooba while listening to an Om Lounge album and it really stood out especially because a lot of the Om Lounge stuff kind of sounds like porn music. Nufoundfunk is really chill and relaxing the vocal tracks are soothing as well as blissfully mind numbing. If you like this you might also want to check out DJ Swingsett.Enjoy!

The Future
A lot of times when musicians get together and try to blend different genres, the product is inconsistent and awkward. This is a glaring exception. This is future music. NuFoundFunk has some of the best grooves I've ever heard. King Kooba does a perfect job of mixing electronic effects into skillful organic instrumentation. To make the package complete, Melissa Heathcote's vocals are absolutely blissful on tracks like "Feel the Color," "Fooling Myself," and "Koobesq." Om records always puts out quality stuff, and for the new-school funk connoisseur this album is a must.

Energizing jazzy electro-funk
I give up -- I don't know what to call this type of music, other than technojazzfunk on dope... King Kooba's beats are more or less laid back, but with surprises and tightness uncommon for these DJ-upstarts. And although the beats are great, they're not the only thing -- the sounds and melodies provide depth and scale that is lacking in 99% of urban beats like these. Its hard not to be transported out of your normal daily rhythm when listening to the seducing and sexy "California Suite", mysterious and cinematic "Feel the Color", or the tightly grooving, fateful grip of "The Artifact". The end result is some of the best tunes that can happen when funkjazztical improvisation and the intensity of drum and bass meet.

For similar experiences, look to Les Gammas, Beanfield, Forest Mighty Black, and Minus 8 (most of these are on the Compost Records label). ... Read more

Reviews (6)

When Drum & Bass was underground ** Must have
Alex Reece's album 'So Far' was the first Drum&Bass I got exposed to back in the early 90's and hooked me to this genre ever since. It's downtempo, has lovely vocals, minimalistic and is not that noisy, overloaded sort of D&B one tipically associates with this genre. I found it by luck when listening through a stack of 20 Cd's in a music store, when D*B was still underground! A must have for Drum&Bass lovers and a cornerstone of any electronic beatz collection. Alex Reece along with Roni Size~!

Alex provides the FEEL GOOD FACTOR
I bought this CD when it was first released way back in the mid 90's. I hadn't listened to it for years until today and it still feels fresh and puts a smile back on your face. It is especially suited to sunny days because the songs flow at a steady pace and are uplifting. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in drum 'n bass lite.

Alex Reece Is Good!.....Need to pay him More Attention.
This guy is truely overlooked..may be he is not marketing himself right. I was first introduced to him on the Plug In and Turn On Vol 3 cd. He is one of the original drums and base innovaters. he music is very accesssable and he does not prefer to take mnay risks but that on no account makes this CD not enjoyable. The bass lines that he uses aare totally cool and very innovative. D&B can be a very redundant genre and despite that fact Reece brings us unique sounds. Every track on the CD is different in its own way. The reason i give this CD 4 stars is because this cd has major pit falls...not mnay..very few actually...but they are huge...they almost make you think what the hell was he thinking???..but they are compensated by the other excillent tracks..so overall this CD is an excillent buy and highly recomended..infact this cd is one of my favoirit CD's of all time...gurenteed you wont be dissapointd.

Greatly mislooked drum n bass gem
Seeing that this album was first produced in 1995, it is safe to say that Alex Reece was playing music way ahead of his time, and way before the exploding popularity of the drum n bass subgenre of electronic music. What makes this collection of songs different from other dnb compilations is the fact that the music does not sound dated almost 7 years since it was first composed. I doubt many drum n bass acts can top what Reece has created years before the storm. Groundbreaking atmospheric drum n bass with a touch of jazz and funk mixed in. Very enjoyable listen, highly recommended.

Excellent - Essential puchase
A mix of beats and funk, easy listening break from the usual hard beats ... Read more

Album Description

LTJ Bukem gathered together this very special retrospective of tracks from his pre-Good Looking days. Dating from1990-'92, these tracks broke new ground in the UK hardcoretechno scene but are virtually unknown outside of it. Onetrack, 'Dreamworld' has never been released at all. Amazing collectible stuff, all on CD for the first time. Comes in a 4 panel digi-box with track-by-track liner notes by LTJBukem. Good Looking Release. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Some of the best stuff put out!!
I have possession of two of his works. My first experience with him was with "Journey Inwards," where I found his style incedible. His choice of drum beats against a mix of everything from elemental instruments to soul groove blew me away. The next sampling was from "Progression Sessions" w/ MC Conrad. In found the continuous compilation format great, and MC Conrad's rapping was cool given the music tempo he worked with. All in all I found both albums amongst my favorites, and they no longer leave my car, as these artists have become for me my de facto driving music.

I now add this disc, "Rarities." It is some of his early works, and it gives the fan an insight into how his style evolved, especially with the notes on the sleeve. I deem tracks 1, 2, and 10 to be his best. I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Drum and Bass for Dummies.
For the average consumer, picking the right drum-and-bass compilation is as risk-free as a game of Russian Roulette. Among the CDs that keep crowding record store bins, there are the quality sets and their shoddily-assembled imitators. But for those who want to introduce themselves to the genre should consider "Bass in Your Face," which features remixes of tracks from artists familiar to the average Joe Schmo. Nervous beats and a memorable bassline revamp Missy Elliott's "The Rain," while rubbery bass glides through Busta Rhymes' radically transformed "Dangerous." En Vogue get the drum-and-bass makeover on the Babyface-penned "Whatever," and the disc's best moment is Armand Van Helden's dynamic re-working of Aaliyah's "One in a Million." Those already familiar to the genre may stick with other releases for advanced students in the drum-and-bass school, but this disc is a worthy consideration for those looking for a good introduction that doesn't have that cheesy "Totally Dance" aftertaste.

This is definitely D & B..
Actually Mickey Finn, Aphrodite, Dillinja, Natural Born Chillers, Lemon D, Dream Team (Bizzy B & Pugwash), Breakbeat Science, and 4 Hero are all Drum & Bass artists, so this easily and most definitely qualifies as a D & B CD. Some of the tracks are excellent, such as The Rain and Me or the Papas..

This is Bass, not Drum & Bass
This is a great CD filled with Bass for your subwoofers in your car, but it is not Drum & Bass. It has lots of really great remixes which I love. Lots of drop beats, and low lows for chest shaking sounds... but no Jungle style Drum & Bass. Buy this one for your car if you've got subs in the trunk!

A Cool CD especially those with varied taste
I am a huge drum & bass fan. And most everything else for that matter. I think the cd is awesome, and is a superb blend of 2 cool genres. For those who think that rap and techno can not blend should hear stuff by propperheads, archive, and roni size just so they can know how wrong they are. Dilinja's remix of me or the papes is incredible

saving grace
all right, i'll agree with DMBassfan305 as to the fact that the two genres of bass and hip hop are different from each other in a very definite way, but jeru the damaja's "me or the papes" (dillinja remix) is an incredible song in a strange sense, and so redeems the album somewhat. as a drum n bass fan, though, i have to say that the mix presented here should be kept seperate. this is one of those "could be better, could be worse" kinda things. ... Read more

Amazon.com

It may come as a shock to the purists, but after two albums of pushing abstruse drum & bass to minimalist and epic extremes, the producer has thrown a heap of new sounds onto his percussive palate. To some, Solaris is going to sound like a chicken in search of a roost: both "Can't Come Down" and "Mine to Give" are pure 1988 old-school tracks that even feature that era's legendary vocalist, Robert Owens. "Terminus" and "Junk" pay loose homage to the nu-school breakz template, while "Halogen" and "Lost Blue Heaven" are beautifully poised, damaged electronic torch songs. There's even some drifting ambiance too. But what's missing in terms of coherence is more than made up for by the visceral power of Photek's production. Intense, stripped back, and wielding more brute force than Leftfield's Swords, there's a menacing beauty at work here that reinforces Photek's reputation for tingling sonic sculpturing on a grand scale. --Calvin Bush ... Read more

Reviews (34)

A disappointment.....
Photek set himself up for this album being bad....

He's revered as a minor god in some places because, well, he made drum n' bass like no other. It was so stripped down, so powerful, so simple.... so obsessive.... that if you were into it, you were into it, and you just knew.... that it couldn't be done any better.... 'Modus Operandi' is both a nightmare and an object of worship for those of us who would listen to just beats.... and would wash our hands thirteen times a day....

I was prepared to be a little disappointed when I first listened to this disc. There is always the slight disappointment with new, out-there kinds of records: I hated 'Supermodified' by Amon Tobin upon first listen; I was ready to burn 'Sex Style' by Kool Keith.

This I sort of liked, which disturbed me. Compared to the stripped back ninja essence of other Photek things, this sounds like stuff that my kid sister, if I had one, would like. For anyone else, it might be a brilliant album: I like the sounds of the drums on some tracks.... BUT....

This is a commercial album AND a house album. It's NOT on par with ANYTHING I have ever heard by Photek before. I was so pleased that other people hated it.... at least I'm not alone....

If you are thinking of buying this and don't have his earlier stuff, skip this and get that. If you have that and don't have Tobin or DJ Food, get them. And, if you have all of that, get Datach'i: at least it's different....

Photek Solaris
Comparing this to "Form and Function" is quite a big jump, but never the less the Photek soul is still visible. I wasn't all into diva singing...I almost regretted buying the CD completely, especially when I discovered the next track had the same deal once again. But I gave it another chance and they grew on me, and before I even realized I was singing along! Along with all the uniquely developed sounds, the song order rolls on very nicely. It beings quite chaotic, but positive, then aims towards love, gets aggressive, then very glum. People that don't like this CD are shying away from Photeks experimentation that's executed extremely well.

if this is bad then I can't wait to hear the good stuff!
i've never heard of photek.

then one day i stumbled upon 'solaris' at the music store and was instantly taken by the CD for two reasons: 1)the CD cover, a cerulean blue sky meeting a cerulean blue sea in some far off exotic locale was the most gorgeous CD cover i've seen in a long time and 2) the CD title 'solaris' is the name of one of my favorite foreign sci-fi movies. so warily i shelled out the fifteen bucks for it, popped it in my stereo and was immediately suprised by what i heard.

judging by other reviews, die-hard fans are saying he's selling out with this release and i don't know if he is. if 'solaris' is any indication of what he's capable of doing then the man is a genius.

'terminus' is a weird track i liked the moment i heard that familar yelping synth sampled from autechre. two sets of conflicting yet complimentary jungle beats battle it out over a lot of synth keyboard.

'junk' is my favorite track w/ it's throbbing warbled bassline, a trippy jungle beat and the word 'junk' repeated at intervals. i can never sit still when i listen to it. this track is the closest thing to perfection on 'solaris'.

'infinity' is true d'n'b and sounds a lot like roni size w/ a little bit of u-ziq thrown in for good measure (maybe it's all those rising strings that make me think that).

'lost blue heaven' is like a dragged down, slowed up version of the orb's 'plum island' even down to the echoed out bjorkesque vocals. drifty, dreamy dub.

'solaris' is another track of pure perfection. a throbbing house beat doubled back on itself that you can feel at the bottom of your belly with an eerie melody and a weird solar wind effect (possibly a sample from the movie 'solaris'?). if swayzak did dark menancing house tracks this would be it.

'glamourama' sounds like filler to me. minimal trance stuff i danced to at early 90s raves in san francisco. a repetitous beat, 4/4 claps, hi'hats and some gal rambling on and on in french. YAWN.

i also have to admit the two actual 'house' tracks on here, 'mine to give' and 'can't come down', are pretty weak (although robert owens has an awesome voice, it just doesn't quite gel with photek's beats). of the two, 'mine to give' is the best. it's turer to the stripped down minimal Detroit techno grooves associated w/ a lot of house music which is probably why it's one of the singles off this release. in any case it's still good stuff.

i know i will definitely buy photek's previous releases. if this is considered his worst 'sell out' CD, then i can't wait to hear what's considered to be his best.

Unexpected cool
I remember feeling betrayed when I read that Rupert Parkes was experimenting with house on Solaris. Parkes? The same man who gave us "Ni Ten Ichi Ryu"? That turned me off. I was really into his brand of martial arts-inspired jungle.

So for the longest time, I had no intention of getting Solaris. Then recently my brother and I decided to pool some record store club cards and claim a free CD. We couldn't really agree on something that we both wanted (within the offer's price restrictions), but after some pressure - including the store closing as we argued - my brother gave into Photek as a suggestion.

I'm glad he did. The two house tracks on the album ("Can't Come Down" and the ridiculously successful "Mine to Give") still feature Parkes' signature sound, the meagre changes being vocals and a 4/4 beat. The rest of Solaris is basically a logical progression from Modus Operandi - brooding and somewhat minimalist, with heavy staccato bass hits. But whereas MO had a film-noir feel, Solaris is science-fiction. It's difficult to explain how this translates into music. Have a listen to samples of "Junk" and "Halogen" though, and you'll know what I mean.

The only reason I've knocked a star off of my review is because parts of some tracks seem sterile and uninspired. If you're willing to put up with this, as I am, then Solaris is a recommended buy. Even for fans of earlier Photek.

a good effort
in photek's latest release, following "form & function," he has shown interest in different sides of the electronic dance music spectrum. in "solaris," photek experiments with house, breakbeat, and ambient sounds, as well as his signature minimalist jungle. the first three tracks are solid breakbeat cuts, straight up, plain and simple. "mine to give" and "can't come down" are house tracks, which aren't my favorites of the album, but are nevertheless decent. my favorite track of this album has to be "glamourama," because i love breakbeats and photek gives it his golden touch. plus, the track also features some eerie female vocals in italian (?). while this album is nothing like "modus operandi" and "form & funcion," it still stands strong. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Roni Size is a man with a mission: to bring drum & bass to the world by any means possible. With his first full-length, Reprazent's New Forms, Size ably took a few small steps for mankind--and a huge leap for the jungle nation. Taking the acclaimed Mercury Award was only the first step toward world domination, but Breakbeat Era just might be the key to unlock the public's ears to drum & bass. Armed with vocalist Leonie Laws--whose snapshot lyrics fit like a glove with the sharpshooting drums and bass--and with coproducer and boy wunderkind DJ Die, one wonders after a listen to this exceedingly catchy record, is there anything Size can't do? --Tricia Romano ... Read more

Reviews (36)

The first breakout drum n bass record?
Like NIN bringing industrial music to the masses in a credible manner with Pretty Hate Machine over 10 years ago, Roni Size and crew have done it with Ultra - Obscene. This album features a bunch of tracks that work on the dancefloor "Late Morning," "Our Disease" as well as hybrid tracks that really are the first drum n bass songs featuring a traditional song structure. Leonie Laws vocals on the title track, "Rancid", and the last track "Life Is My Friend" are amazing. This band deserves to breakthrough.

Incredible, accessible drum & bass.
Breakneck Era would've been a fitting title; this is ultra-fast drum & bass for those who want maximum bounce in their beats. This disc is a perfect example of how accessibility doesn't necessarily mean less edge - far from it.

The production by Roni Size and DJ Die is superb throughout: deep, round, slinky basslines drive the songs relentlessly, amid sampled wah-wah guitars and a wide array of electronic textural washes. Singer Leonie Laws adds just the right measure of breathiness in her singing and a touch of menace to her lyrics, giving the songs a considerable depth not often found in this genre.

I highly recommend "Ultra-Obscene" to anyone with a discerning ear for the transformative possibilities of great music, not just drum & bass enthusiasts.

Ultra Obscene
Breakbeat Era consists of Leonie Laws, DJ Die, and Roni Size. The CD mixes surprisingly detailed drum n bass beats with female vocals. The tracks are as good as Goldies, the fact that they have a female singer complimenting the beats makes it more open to a wider range of audiences. Instead of pure drum n' bass CDs, it doesn't get tedious once it hits the halfway mark. All three of the musicians compliment each other immaculately. DJ Die is typically an okay musician on his own, so is Roni, but when all three colab, all of their individual styles are audible in the conglomerate of cadance, and they all mesh so well.
The only, and I mean *only*, problem I have with the CD is something that cant really be helped - Leonie's voice. She has a really attractive and ear-catching voice, really. But after hearing the voice for tracks on end, it can become a little annoying. It has the spark of billy corrigan's but gets somewhat distracting close to the later portion of the LP. This really deserves 4.5/5 just because it's such a minor infraction, but since it's something so negligible, the decimal should just be rounded up. It's one of the better d n b CDs and groups I've heard in a while.

Its ok
I dunno, I dont see what all the fuss is about. The vocals were actually starting to get on my nerves after a while. I think I'm not the right person for this cd, but I've heard a lot of dnb, and this just wasn't the best.

Breakbeat Era- This song makes the CD worthy
Breakbeat Era was one of the first electronically oriented bands I paid attention to in the world of Modern rock. The song, "Breakbeat Era" is the most well written song on the CD. This song is very tight and jazzy-sounding. The group could have gone many directions. I believe that this was their first full length CD as a band. Worthy effort and decent spin. ... Read more

Album Description

Absolutely essential Squarepusher album from 1999 reissuedvia Warp Records at a nice price. 2003. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Squarepusher does it again.
If you can't enjoy Squarepusher simply because of the fact that there are no lyrics, you're a fool. This isn't supposed to be hip-hop, so please don't compare to Bone Thugs or Outkast. This is idm/jazz at it's finest. So if you're looking for something to "sing along with" like some mindless parrot, steer clear, but if you're looking for an album that will make your jaw drop to the floor and amaze you every time you listen to it, Squarepusher will never let you down.

Squarepooper: What Genius!!!!1!1one
My, how did people with such a low intellect even come to find who Squarepusher is? Bone Thugs, trying to edit the work 'heck', and lack of vocals? Why are you even in this genre? What wanks.

This album, which isn't his best material, is still a very nice listen. The bonus tracks seem to give more of a fulfilment when finished. Compared to his newer, and even some of his older, works, this seems very thin. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, just that his later albums have more of a personality to them. Kind of a completist's thing to get, really.

Great disc by Squarepusher
After listening to a lot of his music, spanning from his first stuff to his newest, I like this one the best, right next to Big Loada. It's more straightforward than a lot of his stuff, but it got a great feel to it.

Those reviews above about the fact that there is no lyrics is hilarious. Vocals don't always make better music. I prefer no vocs, hence this is a great disc, buy if you like Drum and Bass/Jazz, and otherwise unique and creative music.

Bone thugs,... hehe.

Vastly Disappointing
I have to say i tried to listen to this with an open mind. but you know, there just aren't any lyrics? What the H*ECK am i supposed to listen to? i don't quite agree with the first reviewer, as i don't like bone thugz n harmony, but having just listened to Hey Ya! for 3 days straight, i find this really lacking. especially compared to mister Tom's prior releases, this blows.

If you want finely crafted music with spot on vocals, you just can't beat Merzbow. Much better than squarepooper.

More like squarePOOPER!
SquarePUSHER? More lik,e SQUAREPOOPER!
Their musoic is SO WEIRD! There are BEEPS AND ALL THESE WEIRD sopunds but you cn't sing alonfg becausw ethere aren't any words opr anything! Not even any rap!

I'll take BONE THUGS any day over SQYARREPOOPER ... Read more

Album Details

An Instrumental Presentation of the First with MC Conrad. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Simply amazing...
This is an amazing album, especially for those that aren't into the hip-hop/vocals vibe, since the second disk is entirely instrumental. This makes it easier for the listener to fully apprciate the musical structure and subtleties of the songs. That's not to say that Conrad's vocals aren't completely on point, but it's amazing how the lack of vocals can set an entirely different mood. In my opinion, the music in this particular release are of a higher caliber than the one in previous Progression Sessions releases, due to the strong beats, tons of deep and accurate bass, and the especially originality and freshness of the music. Some of these songs are produced by an apparent newcomer to the Good Looking team, by the name of Rantoul, who seems to have an uncanny ability to produce quality tracks that can really take you away. I would say the this is an absolute ESSENTIAL for Bukem's fans.

I see the light...
More I listen, more I like. I purchased this disc 2-3 weeks ago and I should confess, even though I've been a huge Bukem fan, I didn't like the cd as much as I hoped I would. But since it's by Bukem the great, I didn't let go.

A few more days after purchase and a few more rounds in the disc player, I conquered. This is the PERFECT type of music to chill out cruisin' through the glow of new york city lights. I absolutely LOVE the Big Bud tracks especially the second track on the cd. I wasn't impressed at all by Rantoul's style at first but now it makes great sense to me. And Conrads style gives the music an EXCELLENT angle that creates something so real and so different. VERY mature, VERY straight forward, VERY awesome music altogether. "Butterfly" is also another excellent song. I'm looking forward to listening to it again cuz man, it's gettin' better more I play.

WOW! Now I see where it's going, don't you love it when that happens?

Excellent!
I was becoming much less interested in the genre as the frequent reuse of samples and the same drum machine patterns produced a music that was tiresome at best. A co-worker from the UK was amazed that a New Yorker was interested in the genre and had nothing but accolades for Bukem after noticing my copy of Progression Sessions 3. After purchasing this album, I can only say Bukem is spectacular and MC Conrad is excellent. The vocal in addition to the instrumental disk provide a unique listening opportunity

A m a z i n g Dj !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Although in both cds the songs are the same except of course the fact that in the fisrt one is with McConrad and in the other one is the instrumental cd..... the only thing that I can say is that LTJ Bukem knows how to excite you and how to calm you down! Chill out music in combination with Drum and Base!!!! Thanks Ltj

Joyful sound experience
A beautiful musical surprise coming from Good Looking Records. Seductive bass lines and vivid rhythms make the perfect surface for wide and oceanic harmonies. Both relaxing and meditative. MC Conrad's vocal performance makes the necessary distinction. Excellent use of echoes combined with extrinsic voice. In my opinion this is the best Progression Sessions disk so far. ... Read more

Amazon.com

With 12 tracks of lunacy, mayhem, and sheer beauty, Tom Jenkinson's 1996 debut as Squarepusher remains one of the few must-have records of the electronica revolution. Though Jenkinson builds his tracks around his remarkable fusion-inspired fretless bass playing, the album initially sounds like a study in maniacally intricate drum solos and patterns, themselves built from a few Roland drum machines. But closer listening reveals a keen intellect at work. Jenkinson has no interest in either the repetitive drum patterns most junglists prefer or their vapid soundscapes. Instead his songs douse you in rhythm and melody. The acoustic Brazilian guitar of "Squarepusher Theme" is soon devoured by a steaming, staccato drum groove, the track ultimately resolving itself as a kind of 21st-century Latin jazz epic. "Tundra" recalls a battery of mad insects destroying a caterpillar; "UFOs over Leytonstone" creates a slow death rumba; "Kodack" revels in glistening beats and streamlined and manic synths, a sign of Squarepusher to come. "Goodnight Jade" is the album's most unusual track, a lush, ambient drone of lovely bass harmonics and a mouselike melody, showing Jenkinson to be a composer of surprising weight and depth. Squarepusher would make records harder, more intense, and more spectacular, but none more musical than Feed Me Weird Things. --Ken Micallef ... Read more

Reviews (31)

Squarepusher's Best Overall Album?
I've been gorging on Squarepusher lately, so it took some time to really appreciate the individual albums. This one, after several listens has finally charmed me! It is, I believe, the best overall album. Everything's here, from the swingy jazz tunes to moody electronica to drill'n'bass. And, even in a short burst of whimsy, there's "Smedley's Melody" which is maybe Squarepusher's silliest track to date. "Squarepusher Theme" is fantastic after a few listens. "North Circular" has some of the plush toms (I visualize tubes for some reason) from "Conumber" (Burning'n Tree album). "Theme From Ernest Borgnine" is, like the title suggests, earnest. It's a fast (and rare) techno treat with a gripping melody. This is the stand-out track. The rest will require some familiarity from repeated listens to involve you further.

Squarepusher rarely disappoints, but stays unpredictable.

Something for everyone
Feed Me Weird Things is probably the best all-around Squarepusher album there is. Musically it's the most diverse thing Jenkinson's done; there's a lot of jazz influence here, as with his other work, but there's also quite a bit of percussive-focused tracks, like "Dimotane Co." and the amazing "North Circular." "Theme to Ernest Borgnine" is simply gorgeous, and "Squarepusher Theme" is probably my favorite Squarepusher track, featuring some incredible fretless bass soloing (played live by Jenkinson himself) along with the trademark Squarepusher breakbeats. Feed Me Weird Things is an excellent introduction to Squarepusher, as it covers a lot of ground - there's something for everyone on this disc. Recommended.

miles davis changed jazz once, squarepusher did it twice
what miles davis was trying to do 30 years ago, squarepusher finally did. Squarepusher changed the way we look at jazz and at music in general. If you want to buy a cd for historical purposes buy Burning 'n' tree. If you want a cd that will change your life buy feed me weird things. You will not know what hit you.

Superb
Between his somewhat dancy beats and his hardcore jazz breakdowns this has got to one of the best cd's that i have ever heard. This cd, if you read on the back, was soley responsible for the Richard D. James Album. Aphext Twin gave all the credit to Tom Jenkinson and then latter, Aphex Twin got all the credit for IDM. (...) I don't think anyone could touch Tom's style. Allot of people have recreated what Aphex Twin has done. Tom Jenkinson is by far the best bass player of my generation (and thats with Les Claypool taken into consideration). Buy this cd for yourself, your grandmother, your mailman. Everyone should have it.

Nfor the faint of heart
I have a love/hate relationship with Tom Jenkinson/Squarepusher. I find his albums wildly uneven. Along with Hard Normal Daddy, this is probably his most accessible album. There is still about 4 or 5 tracks on this album i just can't enjoy. But the good ones (squarepusher theme, tundra, theme from ernest borgnine, kodak) are so mind blowingly brilliant, it balances out. If you like experimental dnb jazz fusion like squarepusher i highly recommend Amon Tobin. ... Read more

Album Details

Nine Tracks Interwoven Into a Non-Stop 74 Minute Musical Oddyssey. ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Best one in a long while....
I feel sad that I knew about this Album so late! This is really one of my best Albums! I really don't know who Big Bud is, but the minute I saw it was produced by Good Looking Records, the home of LTJ Bukem and other famous intelligent d'n'b artists, I just knew this must be good.

I just can't stop listning to Indian Summer! , my favorite track.

I definitly recommend this everyone who likes groovy/intelligent/atmospheric drum 'n bass.

Finally, ambient drum and bass is achieved
Critically, I have to give this album a lot of respect. This is the ambient drum and bass masterpiece that LTJ Bukem and other artists have been trying to make and not quite succeeded. It's d'n'b, so of course you get the rapid fire (albeit soft) beat delivery throughout; but it's Big Bud's long, slow synths, strings, and even delicate melodies that are the revelation. This music would work as well with about any drum style underneath.

So I appreciate what has been achieved here. If you like d'n'b, or thought this album would appeal to you, by all means this is a safe bet. Now personally, I find the nine tracks repetitive. Every track is essentially a variation of the pattern- great if you want a consistent vibe but a bit monotonous for active listening . For background music this shines, as active listening material, it lacks somewhat.

Final score: 5 technically, 3.5 personally, let's call it a 4.

Textbook of Ambient Drum n' Bass
This is the first solo artist album released on LTJ Bukem's label, Good Looking Records. This is not a typical compilation of producers from his label. It is just one artist doing a continuous mix of his own tracks. If you need a chill out break from the heavier stuff like Roni Size's Touching Down this album is perfect. Very laid back, jazzy, and ambient but still moves along at a fast pace. This is where LTJ was trying to move all along but Big Bud perfected. Big Bud is featured on many of LTJ's mixed albums including a couple Progression Sessions, and a couple Earth albums. I recommend this album along with the whole Earth series to get the best in ambient drum n' bass.

Awesome Atmospheric Drum N Bass
This is got to be one of the top 5 ambient/progressive drum n bass albums of all time. It is on LTJ's label and it is grooving the entire CD, the last 1/4 mellows a little with some slowed down funky beats. Excellent, highly recommended if you like LTJ and cookin'.

I present you BIG BUD..........
WOW, this is one of the BEST drum and base cd's I have ever heard. After buying this, my friends and I went on a weekend road trip that involved a 5 hour drive. That was 5 hours of Big Bud on repeat and later we put it on random just to see what we would hear next and in what order. It didn't even matter. This is a must have cd for any long drive or just enought time for 1 song. This CD will have you coming back for more and dancing all night long. This cd starts with up beats and brings you back to earth with a slow conclusion..... ENJOY ... Read more

Reviews (4)

This is the disc Mouse on Mars wants to make . . .
unfortunately µ-ziq beat them to it! 'grape nut beats part 2' sounds like a remix of MoM's 'actionist respoke' and is 'mouse bums' a slight dig at them? After all it has been two years since their last release of new material. Like MoM's 'idiology', 'bilious paths' is a chock full of static filled drill'n'bass, chopped up vocals and calming melodies. Thankfully, 'bilious paths' is a far cry from the classical string orchestrations of 'royal astronomy'. That's a very good thing because this is absolutely brilliant!!

'on/off' is like a messed up take on Prince from its funky drill'n'bass beats to its chopped up r&b vocals with their naughty refrain of 'Take them panties off.' I like the counter parts of 'siege of antioch' and 'fall of antioch'. The former is an exuberant assault of drill'n'bass, the latter a dirge of distortion. 'aec merlin' is a soothing moment to the disc, about as soothing as downtempo drill'n'bass can get and 'meinheld' is an awesome drum'n'bass workout.

One of best releases I've bought all year.

welcome back
Well, three and a half stars actually. Personally I'm happy to see a very talented man releasing a good album among all the crap these days. He's still the master in producing melodies and rhythms that sound perfectly accidental and he's doing it better than Aphex Twin now. The problem is that there's nothing new. He's making the exact type of music he did seven or eight years ago. Nothing evolving, he stays put where he once was although that being a bad thing is arguable anyway.
My favourite tracks are the calmer ones with stronger melodic structure, namely 'Octelcogopod' and 'Aec Merlin'.
I recommend this album to people who are already familiar with mu-ziq, it's like a warm welcome from an old friend, but if you haven't heard about him before, I suggest you to start with 'In pine effect'.

Pretty disappointing.
I've been a long time fan of µ-ziq. I don't know about anyone else, but take a quick hit from Lunatic Harness/Brace Yourself, and then put this on. There is no comparison. Much of this cd just seems like the regular "its crazy electronic music/madness style" filler. No substance, little originality at this point.

Great follow-up after 4 years absent!
Okay first off, I would say this is mu-ziq's second best album by my taste. The songs on this album have more structure than tango and vectif. I do like tango and vectif, however it meanders and it's not quite as composition-like as I would want it to be. Bilious paths is more toward the lunatic harness sound that I like. This albums sounds almost like a cross between squarepusher and mu-ziq maybe with a little aphex twin. The beats are a little more frenetic this time. The songs seem pretty varied too. My fave is song #2 cause it's the most melodic--a great tune with a cool beat. Song 3 is just the same, but a little subpar to #2. Song 6 is very hardcore techno influenced, thus beat-heavy. 7 and 9 are laidback and beautiful while 8 is more rhythm-driven, while still great in itself. 10 meanders, but seems kinda mind-expanding, 11 is pure melody, 12 is a nice wrap up, and 1 is an adaquate starter--not great, but dancefloor-esque and well-enough put together. 4 sounds very orchestral. 5 is okay but doesn't really seem to stand out. Well, there ya have it! If you like lunatic harness, pick this up! You won't be disappointed ... Read more

Amazon.com

Even in the sensation-crazed world of experimental techno, quirkiness for its own sake is only a good thing the first few times you hear it. That's why the music Mike Paradinas makes as Mu-Ziq is such a joy: you're hearing a fertile, young mind bask in its own creativity, and there are also these weird little melodies going on, as well. Mu-Ziq records are rarely focused, which is at times a liability and at others a minor miracle. Royal Astronomy is the most user-friendly Mu-Ziq record to date, with lovely diva vocals and more textures and hooks than ever to accompany both the frenetic, sped-up drill-and-bass tracks and the mellow, loopy ones. Mu-Ziq's rhythmic experiments are coated in whimsy and tempered with lyricism. --Mike McGonigal ... Read more

Reviews (41)

Not so bad... An original style.
This album is quite good, but giving it a 5 star rating and describing it as excellent - that I can't agree with! The quality of the tunes on here vary too much, but it could be worth a buy though as some really interesting tunes can be found actually.

It seems like Mike Paradinas, while in the studio, has the will to come up with something different. The result however is not always so pleasing. This album has a somewhat commercial touch to it, and to me, the tracks can sound a little formulatic and repetitive. When it was so interesting in the starting minute, the track then sometimes gets boring as it passes on. I would have wanted more depth in the music, but the weird breakbeats add a bit of strength though. From time to time cheesy sound patterns appear, to give the feel of a futuristic amusement park or something. I'm not sure if I like that, but it's kind of original.

The Hwicci Song and Autumn Acid are both strong (the first mentioned is a cool number - hiphop combined with a catchy bass drum. You won't have heard anything like this before.), and Carpet Muncher is very beautiful, and jazzy. The Motorbike Track is my favourite on Royal Astronomy. This is a mad tune, a drum'n'bass affair with ravey synths, which is then suitably followed by Mentim, a good chill-out track.

The strings and vocals that welcomes the second half of the album to your ears, in The Fear, don't feel right in my opinion. World of Leather is the highlight among the latter tracks. After that I usually press skip three times to avoid track 11-13 as they are uninteresting, but Goodbye, Goodbye is an elegant finish.

All this makes up for the rating 3 (+) from me. I haven't heard M-Ziq's other album Lunatic Harness yet but I do look forward to hear more of this guy. I definitely believe that he possesses excellent producing skills - not all tracks on this album do prove that though.

Always the Fear
U-ziq possesses me from time to time, forcing me to return to certain albums and marvel at the way they fell from the musical forge. Its never really a particular purpose that brings me back to each electronic byproduct, nor is there really ever something to call "method" within that madness. Sometimes it's simply bits and pieces of the proposal itself that make me want the whole. When it comes to Royal Astronomy in particular, it's sometimes the layering that makes me think that a certain song is amazing, and other times its simply the choices that were utilized when furthering that audio dynamo. Whether it's the pinging that draws me in or the use of instrumentation that sounds like classical music played through someone's dreams on acid, its always a good fix.

Royal Astronomy has a little of everything within it, and I found the album amazingly done when it comes down to the dynamic it possesses. There are different types of music mixed into the mold, building better tempos and meters by merging blends of "something old" and "something new" until it makes something beautiful. That causes the mediums to be different as well, and the hints of shading and the musical textures used to shift moods depending on what type of moody lighting is used is delightful.

What first introduced me to the album was the video for "The Fear," a lovely sounding track that's like beauty beginning in the middle of a forming sea of storms, and its always stayed with me as my favorite track on the album. It begins with a beautiful number, a female voice reaching out from within it, and then it becomes a swell of motion and noise that reaches out to take over. I've always liked that approach to music, too, the calm in the midst of a sea of sounds, with it grasping onto me and tugging me into the beauty of the thing defined within. I also like the approach taken here and the instrumentation used, with quite a few classical sounds mixing into the electronic fold and blending seamlessly into the sometimes-bizarre surroundings. Because of that, I liked the strangely epic yet oddly tempoed "Scaling," the way "Slice" builds itself up while dipping into an electronic swirl of textures, and the way "Gruber's Mandolin" shouts its presence.

Besides those pieces, there are the more electronic sounds incorporated into the mix; with "The Hwicci Song" taking advantage of a little song of static and a beat mingling as one, "Carpet Muncher" building around some of the noise fibers I've become accustomed to from U-ziq as they ride the electronica rollercoaster ride, and "World of Leather" also playing a little building game within that sound-oriented vortex. Then there are the almost hip-hop sounds found here as well, the haunting ballads mixing and mingling in songs like "Goodbye, Goodbye," and a few other fashions forming the work as a whole.

While this album has been met with a few stiff lips, its actually something I can return to time and again because it has so many components within it. The mixes of melody and madness, the tempos within the tempests; these are done in ways that are rewarding to hear.

Easy to respect, hard to enjoy
Don't come to this record looking for the trademark logic-confounding drum-n-bass tweakings of his other work. This one has a more TV-commercial-friendly aspect to most of it, lots of apparent melodies and string-only washes, less of the vaoprizing remixing workouts of, say, his excellent "Lunatic Harness" record. It drones a bit for the first few tracks (which is still decent droning, but droning nonetheless, and not quite what you go to Mu-ziq for). He gives us some of the daring nosebleed-inducing chops he's built a reputation on with tracks like "The Motorbike Track" and "Burst Your Arm", but all in all it's all over the place with the mood, which makes it easy to respect, but hard to enjoy and even harder to recommend.

Not quite a masterpiece but all in all a very good effort
I burnt this disc awhile back and managed to lose it, but I enjoyed it so much that I recently purchased a copy. That's the quality of Mike Paradinas work! Royal Astronomy starts off strong with an interesting piece entitled Scaling and continues to excel on to track three Autumn Acid (reminiscent of an AFX track). He stumbles a bit on some tracks like The Motorbike Track but drum n' bass isn't really my cup of tea and some of the sparse pieces bored me a bit. Besides that, I would recommend this to open-minded fans of electronic music. The standout tracks as far as I'm concerned are Slice, World of Leather, Goodbye Goodbye and my favorite 56. Looking forward to his next release!

Beyond Nintendo Music
Although this album is not as good as Lunatic Harness, it still deserves the full five stars (merely because Lunatic Harness was around a 25 on a 5 star scale). On this album Mike Paradinas has left behind the classic synth sounds and sine wave modulators in favour of live strings and more listener friendly effects.

This still stays in the same style as Paradinas' older works, only this time around, the orchestrations actually sound like live concert hall orchestrations instead of synthesizers playing complex orchestrations. On top of this, Paradinas keeps with his usual flair for telling emotional aural stories. Until Lunatic Harness gets scored and performed by the London Philharmonic, this is the closest we can get...an emotionally stirring symphonic album with record scratching. ... Read more

Amazon.com

One of the very first major faces in drum 'n' bass music, LTJ Bukem has always enjoyed the spacier, spiritual side of the breakbeat arena. Known for weaving atmospheres and moods using a mixture of almost jazzy pieces and tribal rhythms, Bukem has been both prolific and successful. This Producer set is one of a clutch of recent Bukem releases and serves up a tasty nine-track sampler illustrating how Bukem works his technology yet manages to retain a thoroughly organic sound with his electronic creations. Opener "Cosmic Interlude" (Bukem, like many drum 'n' bass stalwarts, has a fascination with outer space and science fiction) is a peaceful, downtempo arrangement of jazz and hip-hop; "Demons Theme" sees Bukem kick into heavier tribal break beats; while the superb acid-house-tinged undertow of "Atlantis" offers a view to the early days of breakbeat. Rarely hardcore, always evocative, passionate, and certainly innovative in the drum 'n' bass world, the flavors that comprise LTJ Bukem's work are admirably represented here. --Steffan Chirazi ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Easily as Worthwhile as the "Logical" & "Progression" albums
The first in the in 'Earth' series of albums, moves steadily away from the intelligent Drum 'n' Bass that has earmarked the majority of the 'Good Looking Labels' releases, with an album that although taking Drum 'n' Bass / Breakbeat as the foundation of the music, has cast it's net a little further to incorporate influences as broad as: 'Jazz-Fusion, Downtempo, Trip-Hop & Acid Jazz-Funk'.

"The Poets of Thought" start the ball rolling with the Jazz/Hip-Hop Fusion of 'The Rhyme goes on', heavily influenced in its construction by jazz, it's as contemplative as it is soothing, backed by ghost-like horns arrangements with a steady textured breakbeat underpinning the whole thing, it's the musical equivalent of driving through the city late at night. "Appaloosa's - Travelling" shifts the musical focus into more traditional territory, with restrained Jungle, increasing the BPM significantly, and the drum patterns here, will be familiar to all with a long standing history with Drum 'n' Bass/ Jungle, but just as the prospect of any experimentation appears slim, the track bursts into an simple elegant keyboard chord that coupled with the looped high-hat drums & synth melodies presents a interpretation of jungle that is less 'Jump up' and a more a refinement & less abrasive jungle sound, fused with ambient breakbeat.

"The Poets of Thought" again contribute another sublime effort, but this time the paring of Latin-Jazz & eloquent Samba, that largely make up this track, and rhythmic drum patterns make for a energetic fusion of the Brazilian music, this is largely instrumental and a studiously interesting inclusion on this album and not only shows bukem's musical influences are far more wide reaching then Drum 'n'Bass, but that, this track could stand proud on any Brazilian/Cuba themed musical collection.

"Pablo's - Do what you Gotta Do" takes the Jazz influenced Drum 'n' Bass of someone like 'Peshay' (or indeed Bukem's own work), and throws down hypnotic bass & piano arrangments, integrated with a with an (almost) improvisational Jazz aesthetic, this is possibly most familiar to those that follow the intelligent breaks / Intelligent Dance music scene, and is as polished as it is beautifully arranged with these Jazz/Breakbeat crossover tracks. And anyone that still believes that Drum 'n' Bass is squarely suited to the Dance floor would do well, to listen to this fantastic effort.

It's wouldn't be a Bukem Compilation without one of Bukem's own tracks, and thankfully he's realised that everything complied on this album is of an incredibly high standard, and thus wheel's out his 9 Minute Epic "Moodswings", to make sure he's not upstaged by the various artists. And being a Bukem track, not only is it beautifully expressive, but it also has that seemingly unmistakable 'Bukem' stamp all over it. Moodily paced, meticulously devised, and looking to deliver something that works just as well as 'Head noddingly catchily composed music, it's slow almost Electronica tempo and Jazz keyboards sits wonderfully with 'Pablo's' ambient Breaks track in representing sublime Electronic / Downtempo Beats on an album with a fairly eclectic tracklisting.

Anyone looking at this album and seeing the 'Bukem' Name on the front and (quite reasonably) expecting a continuation of either his "Logical Progression" or "Progression Sessions", will undoubtedly feel a little let down. That's because this isn't really a continuation of either of those series of albums, and more a broad spectrum of various forms of music that not only have incorporated Drum 'n' Bass in its various forms, but (more than likely) some of the musical styles that have influenced Bukem, and judging by how his music is constantly referencing Jazz/Soul/Funk, this probably is the case. If there are any criticisms with the album, then the album isn't sequenced with regards to continuity....leaping one minute from sophisticated Jazz-Funk to Jungle/Breakbeat the next, and those expecting bass driven music will also maybe what to look elsewhere, as the mood is generally far too slow, to recreate Bukem's legendary live sets. But as a collection of sublime music that shows Drum 'n' Bass has the potential to show a more soulful side, this ranks with the 'Logical Progression' & "Progressive Sessions" albums.

Extraordinary
LTJ Bukem's myriad labels all turn out pretty good product, though it seems there's been so much lately, it's easy to get overwhelmed. Superior to all other releases though is this one, Earth vol. 1, from 1996. Simply put, despite Bukem's then burgeoning reputation in drum n' bass, this compilation sets the standard for downtempo nu-jazz electronic music.

You've got it all here, from the cool breaks of appaloosa and doc scott (the most d'n'b-oriented tracks here, to downtempo chillout tunes (bukem's extraordinary, lifting "moodswings") to honest-to-god soul jazz (the poets of thought three contributions), to tracks that split the difference (blame's revival, an honest-ta-god breakbeat track with a killer walking bassline).

more should be said about the poets of thought, the name paul hunter recorded under for these sessions. gorgeously recorded double bass lines, samba and hip hop beats, cool horn lines, killer organ-- it's like he's bringing big john patton, jimmy smith, or brother jack mcduff into the 21st century. and it works great.

now the compilation is worth picking up for one track alone, pablo's "do what you gotta do," which splits the difference between trip-hop and d'n'b, and features one of the best horn breaks and vocal samples i've ever heard. bukem, in his liner notes, catches nod to the great gamble & huff philly sound, and that's entirely accurate. this track works on the dancefloor. it works while driving too fast on a city highway late at night. it works when you're laying in the dark with that special someone. it just works. absolutely brilliant.

all in all, this is nearly a perfect record. and unlike many 'electronic' albums, it hasn't become dated, as recording techniques improve. the production on this is so warm and wonderful that this record seems to *improve* with age. seriously. i picked this up in 1997, and now i still pull it out every week or two. i can only say that about a handful of records.

the only downside is this: i don't know how easy it is to find this record anymore. but make it your quest, dear reader. the hours of effort you put into finding it will be rewarded by the years of listening you get out of it.

Ltj Bukem at his best!
This particular cd is my absolute favourite of Ltj Bukem's. This material is really what I connect with the traditional and original Ltj. The songs are perfectly well balanced with long smooth jungle Drum & Bass beats which really makes you relax! An absolutely must have for the one who loves the harmonic dub grooves!

An amazing beginning to a legendary series
Good Lookin' Records is the king of all things drum 'n bass for very good reasons, and "Earth vol 1" is one of those reasons. I personally rate this my second favourite dnb album, running close behind Big Bud's "Infinity + Infinity". Earth is actually quite different to Big Bud's masterpiece though - where I+I is very chilled, spacey, and echo-y, Earth is heavily jazz; it seems to have a bit more substance than I+I, like more happens within each song(though when it comes to the crunch, if you like one then you'll definitely like the other). You can comfortably divide the songs on Earth 1 into 2 categories: the dnb tracks(all rich and atmospheric, with lovely chord washes and deep basses); and the tracks by curious number Poets of Thought, strange trip-hoppy songs, weird but cool. Vol 1 is probably the best of the series, closely followed by vol 3 - the only thing that's different about 3 is the slower bpm, all other musical content is very similar. Vol 4 isn't quite in the same league(but it's still pretty good), and vol 2 is bringing up the tail end of the Earth series quality spectrum(again still quite good!). Earth 1 is an astoundingly good CD, and I couldn't recommend it more highly. Long live GLR, long live Earth.

Drum and Bass unveiled
This was actually my first Drum and Bass, as well as first L.T.J. Bukem CD. I have since purchased a couple others. I love this CD. As a fan of Brian Eno's work from the Late 70's I love ambient flavored music. This CD introduced me to a world of Techno I wasn't familiar with before. I would especially recomend this CD to anyone who loves jazz (fusion or accoustic) as a place to start in Techno music. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Worthy album. Goldie experiments more with drum'n'bass
Goldie does some interesting experimentation in saturnzreturn. Mother is a great background piece, very relaxing, interesting structure even though it's an hour plus long. Tempertemper seems to be the marketable song on the track with some hard edges guitar riffs. Digital is rather cool with smooth but gripping poetry from KRS-1. Dragonfly is probably my favorite song on the track with some stylish drum rhythms, flute melodies, and soulful lyrics. Chico-Death of a Rock Star brings Goldie back to a little more old school breakbeat, some swaying panning tricks (listen with headphones), and some rather odd chord pads. Letter of Fate is tradition Goldie and another great track from this album. There's some great soulful singing on this one along with a simple yet alluring piano harmonization. All and all, a worthy album from Goldie.

Goldie is my friend.
Sort of a silly cd, since it covers so many moods. But I guess that sort of makes it epic, huh? "Mother" is genius. It's very long, and I'm down wit it. "Truth" is weird, with David Bowie doin' vocals 'n all. That's pretty groovy though. "Temper Temper" I had a hard time with. At first, I thought it was pretty stoopid (!), 'cause it had a really weak beat. It took me a while to realize that Saturnzreturn is not about the beat, but about all the other noise. Digital ( wit KRS-1) has got to be one of the greatest songs ever written. I also dig the Armand Van Helden remix of it on the single. Grooo-vy.

David Bowie makes the difference!
I have followed Goldie for quite some time. Drangonfly and Mother MAKE this 2 disc set worth your while. It is the last of this particular phase of Goldie. More rythmically complex than his first one, Goldie put his heart into this. David Bowie lends his voice to Mother and Drangonfly is a trip hop wonder. Excellent spin!

You'll either love it, or hate it............I LOVE IT
This is an album which has everything - Mellow, floaty tunes, such as dragonfly/believe, aggressive up-tempo beats such as Temper Temper/Chico, and emotional, powerful pieces such as Mother/Letter of fate. Fans of any musical genre should find at least one track to suit them. Personnaly, I prefer this album than the hugely hiped 'Timeless', which is also an excellent album, but lacks some of the emense variety that 'Saturn' has to offer. The album may have floped in the sales charts, but I praise the day it became a part of my music collection! Goldie - you rule!!!!!

Good, but not as good as "Timeless"
This is the third Goldie album that I have purchased and while it is not as good as "Timeless" (few CDs are) it is still pretty amazing. This two CD set has everything: Jazz, R&B, hip-hop, and even more experimental classical-like arrangements contained on the first CD. The bass beats are the key to Goldie's music and the ones on this CD are super-groovy. He's at his best when he combines his Drum n' Bass style with some very catchy R&B melodies. The results are truly astounding. ... Read more

Album Details

Electro. This Release Serves as an Excellent Introduction to the Aux 88 Sound with Many Tracks by Established Acts Such As: Underground Resistance, Drexciya, Dopplereffekt, DJ Assault and Microknox Along with their Own Tracks all Mixed Together. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Musical Jack-Hammers Dancing in My Head
I have never in my life heard such pounding bass. This CD is definitely an eye-opener to the subversive Detroit techno-bass scene. Techno-bass is a hybrid of 80's style electro and pounding, resonating, bass driven techno; creating an eerie robotic world. This CD has a bit of everything from booty-tek to German electro all manipulate to fit the Detroit sound. It is dark and cold on the surface, yet full of vibrancy and energy underneath, a perfect metaphor for the Motor City!

exhillirating electro party tunes
probably one of the best detroit electro compilations ever! Every track is catchy and puts you in the right mood. The bass on this cd will have u addicted and you will go through many pairs of shoes dancing away to it. You can't go wrong with this album. Simply bassalicious! ... Read more