PACHEKO Tryouts / Bi-Polar Bear (LoDubs) 12" 4.98

PACHEKO / DJ 100MADO Figure 8 / Trance 8 (Lo Dubs) 12" + cd-r 9.98

PACO SALA Ro-Me-Ro (Digitalis) lp 19.98
We'd been meaning to list this for a while now, the lp debut of Paco Sala, aka Antony Harrison, who normally does time in the outfit Konntinent. In Paco Sala, he indulges his love of hip hop and synth pop and Italo Disco, but in a way that obscures/obfuscates those influences, recasting them as part of a slightly darker sonic vision. The vibe hazy and ethereal, dubbed out rhythms, and woozy melodies, the sound a glorious slo-mo soul drag, synths drifting above chopped and screwed rhythms, whispered vox, softly psychedelic and ominously soulful, definitely reminds us of Burial and How To Dress Well, although Paco Sala's M.O. is definitely more home brewed and abstract.
The female vocals first surface on the second track, a lazy, sultry croon over a skeletal beat, and a dense swirl of swoonsome synths and fractured melodies, more dubbed out beats, and soaring strings, the whole thing infused with some pulsing electro skitter. Lush and lovely, late night electro soul dream dub that displays shades of Portishead, and other nocturnal purveyors of downtempo sopor, but again, the sound of Paco Sala is much more fractured, beats splinter and spin into the ether, melodies seem to melt and ooze, the vocals wraithlike, wind their way through these sprawling expanses of beat driven shimmer. In places, the sound does crystallize, and sheds some of that hazy murk, revealing more of a soul pop core, but inevitably, the sounds drift back into some woozy netherworld, where Harrison's mad scientist sonic alchemy results in some gorgeously lysergic, electro-soul witch-dub weirdness.
MPEG Stream: "Dumb Truths"
MPEG Stream: "Gifts Of The Bloom"
MPEG Stream: "Earn Your Stripe"

PADDED CELL Night Must Fall (DC Recordings) cd 22.00
Time for the noirishly groovy, '70s prog and funk infected, jazzily inflected debut full length from the UK's sinister, stylish Padded Cell. What time is that? About 2am maybe. Night must fall, indeed it must.
Those of you that picked up that excellent Milky Disco comp on Lo last year oughtta remember the track "Konkorde Lafayette", which also appears here in edited form. Padded Cell's contribution was a highlight of that comp, which also featured Studio, Sorcerer, Quiet Village and fellow DC artists The Emperor Machine, among others.
Almost entirely instrumental (there's only a couple of vocal cuts), generally dark and creepy and sometimes bleepy, Night Must Fall slow-burns through slinky, cinematic Goblinesque grooves that bring in some no-wave sax blat, and plenty of vintage analog synth zapp and bass brapp. Padded Cell certainly nods to Italo disco... and also the "disco not disco" NYC '80s downtown punk-funk scene - in fact Dennis Young of Liquid Liquid is this album's propulsive guest drummer! Imagine a spooky and suspenseful John Carpenter soundtrack gone dubby disco... Very cool, so cool in fact we had to import these directly from the label in England.
PS. we also got this on vinyl but unfortunately they all came with fairly badly bent corners...we'll try to get replacements but if you can't wait and want the wax, let us know...
MPEG Stream: "Savage Skulls"
MPEG Stream: "City Of Lies"
MPEG Stream: "Konkorde Lafayette (edit)"

PADDED CELL Night Must Fall (DC Recordings) 2lp 23.00
DC sent us new covers (the first batch were a bit bent) so now we can list the vinyl of this! Here's the highlight review we ran of the cd version last list:
Time for the noirishly groovy, '70s prog and funk infected, jazzily inflected debut full length from the UK's sinister, stylish Padded Cell. What time is that? About 2am maybe. Night must fall, indeed it must.
Those of you that picked up that excellent Milky Disco comp on Lo last year oughtta remember the track "Konkorde Lafayette", which also appears here in edited form. Padded Cell's contribution was a highlight of that comp, which also featured Studio, Sorcerer, Quiet Village and fellow DC artists The Emperor Machine, among others.
Almost entirely instrumental (there's only a couple of vocal cuts), generally dark and creepy and sometimes bleepy, Night Must Fall slow-burns through slinky, cinematic Goblinesque grooves that bring in some no-wave sax blat, and plenty of vintage analog synth zapp and bass brapp. Padded Cell certainly nods to Italo disco... and also the "disco not disco" NYC '80s downtown punk-funk scene - in fact Dennis Young of Liquid Liquid is this album's propulsive guest drummer! Imagine a spooky and suspenseful John Carpenter soundtrack gone dubby disco... Very cool, so cool in fact we had to import these directly from the label in England.
MPEG Stream: "Savage Skulls"
MPEG Stream: "City Of Lies"
MPEG Stream: "Konkorde Lafayette (edit)"

PADDED CELL Word Of Mouth (DC Recordings) 12" 11.98

PALE SKETCHER Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed (Ghostly International) cd 13.98
Pale Sketcher finds Justin Broadrick taking his post Godflesh project Jesu in an entirely new direction. Named for Pale Sketches, a collection of early Jesu demos and song fragments, unused parts and unfinished songs, which were presented on Pale Sketches as a collection of odds and ends, but here are reworked into a mysteriously minimal electronica. And to be totally fair, the sound, while on the surface seems radically different, really doesn't sound all that far removed from the sound of Jesu proper, sure the thick metalgaze guitars are stripped away, and the beats are a bit more skeletal and overtly electronic, but the lush shoegazey drift is still what it's all about. Thick swells of melancholy minor key shimmer, spidery melodies, hushed gauzey production haze, everything sun dappled and washed out and prismatic, it's not that hard to imagine that instead of this being a one time excursion, that this is in fact the direction Jesu was, or is, headed. Every record since the debut, Heartache, has consistently gotten less heavy, more and more mellow and dreamy, drifting ever closer to a sort of M83 style retro eighties shoegaze doom pop, so it would make perfect sense for Jesu to gradually be transformed into something warm and dark and electronic.
The sound here suits the songs perfectly, dreamy and minimal, moody and hushed, a little bit dubby, the heaviest parts are the swaths of buzzing dubsteppy bass that surface here and there, but otherwise this is like some spaced out soundtrack composed by Jesu, very cinematic, haunting and lovely, stripped down and abstract, the vocals ghostly and ethereal, in fact most all of the sounds here are ghostly and ethereal, allowed to drift and shimmer, held in place by muted pulses, and streaks of soft skitter, the whole thing ends up sounding so dreamlike, so otherworldly, the perfect next step in Jesu's constant evolution.
MPEG Stream: "Don't Dream It (Mirage Mix)"
MPEG Stream: "Wash It All Away (Cleansed Dub)"
MPEG Stream: "The Playgrounds Are Empty (Slumber Mix)"
MPEG Stream: "Plans That Fade (Faded Dub)"

PALE SKETCHER Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed (Ghostly International) lp 17.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Pale Sketcher finds Justin Broadrick taking his post Godflesh project Jesu in an entirely new direction. Named for Pale Sketches, a collection of early Jesu demos and song fragments, unused parts and unfinished songs, which were presented on Pale Sketches as a collection of odds and ends, but here are reworked into a mysteriously minimal electronica. And to be totally fair, the sound, while on the surface seems radically different, really doesn't sound all that far removed from the sound of Jesu proper, sure the thick metalgaze guitars are stripped away, and the beats are a bit more skeletal and overtly electronic, but the lush shoegazey drift is still what it's all about. Thick swells of melancholy minor key shimmer, spidery melodies, hushed gauzey production haze, everything sun dappled and washed out and prismatic, it's not that hard to imagine that instead of this being a one time excursion, that this is in fact the direction Jesu was, or is, headed. Every record since the debut, Heartache, has consistently gotten less heavy, more and more mellow and dreamy, drifting ever closer to a sort of M83 style retro eighties shoegaze doom pop, so it would make perfect sense for Jesu to gradually be transformed into something warm and dark and electronic.
The sound here suits the songs perfectly, dreamy and minimal, moody and hushed, a little bit dubby, the heaviest parts are the swaths of buzzing dubsteppy bass that surface here and there, but otherwise this is like some spaced out soundtrack composed by Jesu, very cinematic, haunting and lovely, stripped down and abstract, the vocals ghostly and ethereal, in fact most all of the sounds here are ghostly and ethereal, allowed to drift and shimmer, held in place by muted pulses, and streaks of soft skitter, the whole thing ends up sounding so dreamlike, so otherworldly, the perfect next step in Jesu's constant evolution.
MPEG Stream: "Don't Dream It (Mirage Mix)"
MPEG Stream: "Wash It All Away (Cleansed Dub)"
MPEG Stream: "The Playgrounds Are Empty (Slumber Mix)"
MPEG Stream: "Plans That Fade (Faded Dub)"

PALEFACE Rinse: 05 (Rinse) cd 21.00

PAN AMERICAN The River Made No Sound (Kranky) 2lp 15.98
More soothing, minimal atmospheric washes with deeeep bass thuds from Mark Nelson (also of Labradford). We've had a number of people come in lately asking for "relaxing music", and well, if any of those folks are listening now, they can be assured that Pan American's follow-up to their lovely 360 Business/360 Bypass is the perfect sonic relief they've been seeking. Spacious and airily ambient. No guarantees, but these 55 minutes of calm might be just what you need if your day takes a stressful turn.

PAN AMERICAN / JANEK SCHAEFER (Fat Cat) 12" 8.98
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So far this series of split singles which has features nothing but gems from Gescom, V/VM, Foehn, and Third Eye Foundation strikes gold again with a split between Pan American and Janek Shaefer. Pan American is the solo project from Mark Nelson, the guitarist for Labradford, whose propensity for bleak Southern Gothic atmosphere could easily fit on a David Lynch score, complete with somber Fender Rhodes organ chords and dubbed out electronica. The Wire calls architect Janek Schaefer "Nelson's evil twin" as he develops noisy soundwashes constructed with a custom-built turntable which picks up every last speck of dust and magnifies them into percussive noise blasts.

PAN AMERICAN / KOMET / FISHEROFGOLD Personal Settings (Quatermass) cd 16.98
"Personal Setting" is a split release of electronica-dub from Pan American, Komet, and Fisherofgold. Mark Nelson has transformed his Pan American from a slightly electronic version of Labradford (Nelson's other project) into a VladislavPoleKitClaytonDelay dub outfit, with deep rolling basslines and off-rhythm synthetic organ stabs adding to Nelson's penchant for late-night moodiness. I wouldn't be surprised to see the next Pan American album on Mille Plateaux. Despite applying similarly long delays as Pan American does on his tracks, Komet (aka Raster Noton founder Frank Bretschneider) tightens things up with a rigid rhythmic structure amidst the dubbed out bleep pixelation. Fisherofgold offers the loosest abstraction of dub, with fluctuating Chain Reaction-ist metallic washes, amorphous basslines, and reversed granular synthesis.

PAN SONIC A (Mute) cd 14.98
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In losing the 'A' from their name and assigned the missing letter as the title of their latest record (a OULIPO style fuck-you to the electronics giant), Pan Sonic (aka Mika Vainio and Ilpo Vaisainen) have certainly mellowed out, in favor of bleak minimal tones accompanying very downtempo beats. As their previous outings have been ear splitting documents of harsh phase shifting over hyperkinetic throbbing techno, A is surprisingly calm and melodic.

PAN SONIC A (Mute) 2lp 12.98
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In losing the 'A' from their name and assigned the missing letter as the title of their latest record (a OULIPO style fuck-you to the electronics giant), Pan Sonic (aka Mika Vainio and Ilpo Vaisainen) have certainly mellowed out, in favor of bleak minimal tones accompanying very downtempo beats. As their previous outings have been ear splitting documents of harsh phase shifting over hyperkinetic throbbing techno, A is surprisingly calm and melodic.

PAN SONIC Aaltopiiri (Mute/Blast First) cd 15.98
Pan Sonic -- the Finnish duo of Mika Vainio and Ilpo Vaisanen -- have taken up residency in Barcelona, which has made quite an impact upon the duo's electro-magnetic aesthetic. Their arctic and crystalline techno minimalism didn't staand a chance against the Barcelona sun. Heat and humidy have warmed up Pan Sonic's oscillators, random noise generators, and antique '80s drum machines causing them to vibrate with an almost mechanized clatter. Regardless of location, Pan Sonic is still in the business of manufacturing an alienated electrical field that is at times hostile, and at others, sublime. On "Aalthopiiri," the duo infuses stuttering grooves (more of skeletonized mid-'80s electro stomp than the spectral techno of their contemporaries like Thomas Brinkmann or Wolfgang Voigt) and tonal purism with an increasingly searing white hot / saw tooth buzz. Throughout the album, Pan Sonic terminates the rhythms to let the constant electric flux of their machines speak. These anti-rhythmic interludes specify just how unique the Pan Sonic sound has become by modulating in organically complex abstractions which thankfully lack all of the studied sterility of the Raster / Ritornell click.
Yet another triumph for the electron courtesy of Pan Sonic.

PAN SONIC B (Mute) 12" 6.98
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Of course the single following their new album A must be titled B...where the album was a slow moving expanse of downtempo breakbeats and an icey sheen of minimalist bleeps, the single is an abusive techno blast with a the panzer march of a 303 setting the quick pace for buzzing electrostatic riffs. Sounds much closer to earlier Panasonic releases like Kulma and Vakio than to the newer stuff. And, it's of course great on 33 too!

PAN SONIC Gravitoni (Blast First Petite) cd 17.98
Here stands the final report from Finnish electronic music masters Pan Sonic, a heavy, super distorted, seriously aggressive swansong, as Mika Vainio and Ilpo Vaisanen have decided to call it quits, years after releasing their first ep on the now seminal Sakho label. Moire patterns of phase-shifting bleeps and spiralling waves held their Sputnik orbits around punishingly simple techno drum programming in their earliest incarnation, with much of their gear being hand-built or repurposed from Russian technology that occasionally crossed the border into Finland. Hence, the Pan Sonic take on techno has always been unique compared to even the most innovative of techno producers, with their typical arsenal of Roland gear. Throughout those 16 years, the rhythms of Pan Sonic have shifted away from the techno monophunk and towards a mechano-electro swagger. Ghosts of Suicide's rockabilly influence, the industrial foundations laid by Throbbing Gristle, and the psychoacoustics transmitted from Xenakis' electronic scores all manifest within Pan Sonic. Much of the poetics of the group's sound are based on the tiniest of objects, amplified through extraordinary means as to express the sublime power of X-rays, radio waves, and the energy housed within the atom itself. The title Gravitoni refers to a hypothetical particle that has been predicted within quantum physics to be related to gravitational force and its correlative relationship to spacetime.
The album begins with the Pan Sonic duo revving their electrical engines and expelling visceral riffs of cathode-ray noise grafted upon urgent breakbeat rhythms whose pace hurtles down the path of linear particle accelerators, smashing into anything that gets in their way. But gradually, the album sublimates the rhythm amidst arctic reverberations of electrical pings cast against the walls of a huge metallic chamber. This progression from the claustrophobic to the expansive harkens to Pan Sonic's masterful 4cd boxset Kesto which took a similar sonic route and which positions Gravitoni as a fantastic finale to an incredible career. So recommended!
MPEG Stream: "Voltos Bolt"
MPEG Stream: "Hades"
MPEG Stream: "Pan Finale"

PAN SONIC Katodivaihe / Cathodephase (Blast First) cd 14.98
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In 2004, the Finnish tech-minimalist duo Pan Sonic unleashed Kesto, a massive 4cd boxset that encapsulated all of their ideas, one half focused on their style of augmenting minimalist techno with engine propelled noise, while the other half concerned itself more with stripping everything away resulting in sublimely still abstractions of electron orbits and cathode ray hum. Three years later, Pan Sonic have yet to match that body of work, even after they applied plenty of those strategies to their acclaimed collaboration with John Duncan; and in many ways, Katodivaiche is an impressive recapitulation of Kesto with the necessary fine-tunings and adjustments that continue to keep Pan Sonic at the forefront of contemporary electronica. The first track enjoys the company of Icelandic cellist Hildur Gudnadottir, whose languid notes counterpoint the clinical breakbeats shifting Pan Sonic's homage to Throbbing Gristle closer to contemporaries like Murcof or Polmo Polpo. While the next couple of tracks are Pan Sonic's trademarked blasts of concussive bomb noise exploding over low slung technotic grooves, Pan Sonic drops a dubstep number next, which should be the template for where South London should go next with that sound. Like the best tracks from Kode 9 and Burial, Pan Sonic focus on the physicality of stalking basslines while shifting layers of rhythm glide above effortlessly. Elsewhere, the phase shifting bleep and bloop which dominated the early Pan Sonic recordings return, perhaps in response to a series of minimalist techno singles released by Berlin's Sleeparchive who shamelessly / brilliantly appropriated the Pan Sonic / Plastikman sound. Altogether, it's a brilliant, if somewhat familiar sounding album from the masters of Finnish electronica.
MPEG Stream: "Virta 1"
MPEG Stream: "Hyonteisista"
MPEG Stream: "Lapevinmeri"

PAN SONIC Kesto (Mute) 4cd 36.00
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Sometime in 2002, the Finnish techno-minimalists Pan Sonic embarked on an incredible world tour which took them to some truly exotic locations including Singapore, Tijuana, and Easter Island. By the time they got back to Europe, Pan Sonic's Mika Vainio was exhausted to the point of having to cancel their travels through Eastern Europe and even into Africa. Despite the fatigue, Pan Sonic managed to find their way back in the studio where they produced Kesto, a monumental 4cd set of all new material.
The first two discs show that Pan Sonic are still at the top of their game. Here, they revisit many of the rhythmic assaults that Pan Sonic unleashed on their debut album Vakio with low slung electro-breaks alternating with metronomic techno grooves set in a volatile field of blistering electricity. Where Vakio's intensity came from a psychoacoustic interplay of ice-cold tonalities, Kesto's rhythmic facets explode through stomp box distortion dynamics applied to their analog synths. The first two discs romp for over 100 minutes of aggressive incendiary electronica that's absolutely spectacular.
The final two discs of Kesto present the more introspective sides of Pan Sonic. The third disc is not dissimilar to Vainio's exquisite solo albums on Touch, as Pan Sonic suspend magnetically charged fragment against a blackened field and documents their interactions. The last disc is the weakest of the bunch offering an hour long homage to Charlemagne Palestine where they come across as a little too constrained by Palestine's static minimalism. Other homages dot the earlier discs with much greater panache, including reverential nods to Suicide, Throbbing Gristle, Bruce Gilbert, Keiji Haino, and Alvin Lucier.
Kesto will undoutably stand out as one of the best electronica albums of 2004.
MPEG Stream: "Virtamuuntaja"
MPEG Stream: "Mutaaattori"
MPEG Stream: "Rahina 3"
RealAudio clip: "Selittamaton"

PAN SONIC Kulma (Mute) cd 15.98

PAN SONIC Live 05/10/1995 in London (Jenny Divers) cd 19.98
While the previous live album from Pan Sonic was mostly comprised of sequenced elements from various Panasonic (as they were known then) and Mika Vainio recordings, this live recording seems to showcase the group generating new sounds not found on any of their records. At this time, Pan Sonic had paired down to the duo of Vainio and Ilpo Vaisainen. For this live show, they set down simple electro thud breakbeats and techno stutters distilled from the Detroit aesthetic upon which they layer crystalline tones and muffled bass tones, building grey noises and a general atmophere of being really cold. At times, this set gets fairly aggressive with an huge arppegiating beats and post-TG analog clatter, but for the most part Pan Sonic relies on their familiarity with the Arctic cold to translate electricity into rhythmic noise. Great stuff!

PAN SONIC Live NYC 1995 (Jenny Divers) cd 19.98
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Back in 1995, Pan Sonic was known as Panasonic (before the hi-fi conglomerate felt threatened by a bunch of Finns' using their name), and was a trio comprised of Mika Vaino, Ilpo Vaisanen, and Sami Salo. These performances document the crystalline distillation of industrial-noise bruitism / hypnotic minimal techno that inspired Paul Smith of Blast First to sign Pan Sonic to his label (and thus lined them up to land on Mute here in the US). Some of the material from these performances ended up on their first album "Vakio" but also includes some of Mika Vainio's solo recordings as ¯, and thankfully some unreleased material (including one great track which sounds sort of like "Convincing People" by Throbbing Gristle - without Genesis' vocals, of course). You'll certainly have to watch the bass response from your speakers when you play this, as these recordings weigh a little too heavy on deep rumbling bass tones, which probably sounded awesome live, but will undoubtedly cause your neighbors some grief. This is packaged annoyingly in a die-cut oversized plastic card, which may be handy if you wanted to bind it in your day planner.

PAN SONIC Vakio (Mute) cd 15.98
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Reissue of Panasonic's first album now features the 'legal' spelling of their name. Working with the psychoacoustic principles of phase shifting and beats generated from similar frequencies slammed against each other, Pan Sonic demonstrates the brutality of minimalist electronica.

PAN SONIC / CHARLEMAGNE PALESTINE Mort Aux Vaches (Staalplaat) cd 15.98
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Sure there's a novelty to a collaborative album recorded by the figureheads from two generations of uncompromising (and at times brutal) minimalism, but this is not your garden variety resuscitation of crotchety '60s minimalism by Jim O'Rourke. When Charlemagne Palestine and Pan Sonic set organs, oscillators, and random noise generators to constantly warble for over an hour, their intentions are far from benevolent. This album of uneasy listening was commissioned by the VRPO Radio in the Netherlands and is limited to 1000 copies. If you blink, you'll probably miss it.

PAN SONIC / HAYLEY NEWMAN / DAVID CRAWFORTH Rude Mechanic (Piano) 2cd 19.98
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From the liner notes: "Rude Mechanicals were unskilled assistants used in early medical operations who performed rudimentary tasks such as restraining and muffling un-anaesthetized patients as well as catching their dismembered body parts and fluids in buckets."
Crawforth, Newman, Vainio, and Vaisanen use this motif to meld all sorts of drones, blips, bleeps, cricks, creeks, moans, and melodies from such sound artists as Bruce Gilbert, Scanner, Jimi Tenor, Kaffe Matthews, Simon Fisher Turner, Susan Stenger (Band of Susans), etc... into an extraordinarily cohesive collaborative project of pulsing noise.

PANACEA Brasilia (Caipirinha Music) cd 14.98
Fourth in a series from the fledgling, but well funded electronica label Caipirinha. The concept: electronica "interpretations" of, or tributes to, (mostly modernist) architects and their works. Writing about music, dancing about architecture--ack! we're dealing with both here! This fourth entry is from the terror-show junglist Panacea, who has chosen Oscar Niemeyer as his subject. Niemeyer was the architect of Brasilia, the utopian project of building a modernist captial city deep within the isolated heartland of Brazil in the 1950s. One of the features of Brasilia was a purposeful absence of pedestrian life in favor of the efficiency of the automobile, and as a result the place has obtained the stigma of being a sterile city in a country that is rich in cultural liveliness. Panacea has had a knack for (violent) alienation on his previous recordings, and this one is certain a bleak listen, but his rapid-fire junglist beat destruction isn't really deployed here. (Nor, for that matter, does this album feature any of the electro/hiphop workouts for which Panacea is also known.) Rather, he showcases a staccatic array of ping pong oscillations and eerie organ chords. By the end of the record, a few of his brutalist breaks do seep through the chlorine drenched electronics. On the whole, tho, this is Panacea sounding close to Pan Sonic. As with every other release in the series, the concept and the sound are two non-convergent trains of thought... so much so that the music really could exist without us having to know that this had anything to do with Oscar Niemeyer. Despite the the questionablity of the series concept, 'Brasilia' is an interesting twist on Panacea's electronic brutality, venturing into a more abstract realm than before. One of his best efforts in fact.

PANACEA German Engineering (Position Chrome) cd 16.98
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Distorted beats and random live samplings from our favorite techstep artist, the formerly chubby now hunky Panacea. Not one of his more focused efforts of hiphop infused techno chaos, maybe a bit too heavy on the chaos. Too much mix, not enough content I guess. Inside there are some photots of the new Panacea, all buffed out and trim. Methinks maybe he traded in his creativity and spunk with his love handles. Fans though will find stuff to like.

PANACEA Low-Profile Darkness (Force Inc./Chrome) cd 15.98
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German "dance" music just gets more and more brutal as Panacea pushes the intensity of techstep (a la Nico, Trace and Rush) to its current limit. I cannot imagine that beats can get any harder or darker, or more searingly distorted. Nor that an Izod shirt could go so well with army fatigues and a lip piercing. Highly, highly recommended. Butthole Surfers fans take note.

PANACEA Low-Profile Darkness (Force Inc./Chrome) lp 15.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
German "dance" music just gets more and more brutal as Panacea pushes the intensity of techstep (a la Nico, Trace and Rush) to its current limit. I cannot imagine that beats can get any harder or darker, or more searingly distorted. Nor that an Izod shirt could go so well with army fatigues and a lip piercing. Highly, highly recommended. Butthole Surfers fans take note.

PANACEA Phoenix Metabolism (Position Chrome) cd 15.98
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As the picture on the sleeve can attest to, it is time for Panacea to claim his rightful position as the Susan Powter of electronica, while musically, his breakbeat mania turns toward hip hop and away from the simplistic brutalism of his earlier records.

PANACEA Phoenix Metabolism (Position Chrome) lp 23.00
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As the picture on the sleeve can attest to, it is time for Panacea to claim his rightful position as the Susan Powter of electronica, while musically, his breakbeat mania turns toward hip hop and away from the simplistic brutalism of his earlier records.

PANACEA Twisted Designz (Industrial Strength / Chrome) cd 15.98
Oh how we LOVE LOVE LOVE the rotund German darkstep musician Panacea. Finally, the domestic release of Panacea's second album sees the light of day (with two US-only bonus tracks absent from the import). Monstrous apocalyptic breaks and industrial noise that has been mutated far from the tropes of drum & bass that it may have transcended such a description. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for those with strong ears.

PANACEA Underground Superstardom (Position Chrome) cd 15.98
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PANACEA VS. HANAYO Hanayo In Panacea (Mille Plateaux) cd 15.98
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Not so much of the techstep brutality Panacea has been known for, rather our favorite German techno fella finds himself building heavy Wagnerian electronica for Japanese pop singer Hanayo...pretty amazing. Dunno about the "beat-up little girl" look Hanayo's got going, though.

PANDA BEAR Surfers RMX (Kompakt) 12" 14.98

PANJABI MC Beware (Sequence) cd 17.98
Man, why hasn't anybody made this record until now?! Boomin' MTV style big beat hip hop with Bollywood samples and vocal breaks! This is so good. A few artists have dabbled with Indian samples in the past, but none have pulled off this not-so-unlikely hybrid as perectly as Panjabi MC. Take the crazy, exotic over-the-top-ness of Indian movie soundtracks, tablas and sitars, wild vocalising, awesome male and female vocal interplay, and the everything-and-the-kitchen-sink aproach of the Bollywood soundtrack (funk and jazz and heavy metal and lounge and country and soul...) with a huge, speaker rattling production, some rough and funky hip hop, and maybe even get Jay-Z to rap on a track... and you've got a definite winner. The record is split evenly between bumping, barnstorming dance tracks and brooding, hypnotic, slow-burners. Really cool.
MPEG Stream: "Beware"
MPEG Stream: "Jogi"
MPEG Stream: "Mirza Part 2"

PANTHA DU PRINCE Black Noise (Rough Trade) cd 14.98
We first heard Pantha Du Prince last year on his excellent 12" The Splendour, and we knew we had most definitely discovered a new (to us!) important force in the word of electronica. With the release of his third full length, he seals the deal, demonstrating for sure, with every song, that he's absolutely one of the most interesting, nuanced and unique modern electronic musicians today.
Bringing such warmth and emotion to his meticulously crafted songs, we're reminded a bit of early Four Tet and the first Mum record. Delicate, and brimming with layers of warm shimmer. There are a couple tracks which feature guests, including Panda Bear on vocals for one track, but to be honest we don't think Pantha Du Prince really needs vocals at all, as his songs are already so expansive, so complete, immaculately constructed, and so so evocative, allowing the listener to process the sounds in a wide range of ways. The vocal tracks are definitely nice, and do add a bit of a pop element, but its the rest of the album that really strikes such a strong chord with us. We're always so impressed when someone is able to bring such rich nuance and mood to purely instrumental music (electronic or otherwise) and Pantha Du Prince does it so well. It's also appealing that there's really not a quick electronic sub-genre to put him in, it's not dubstep, space disco, techno, etc. In some ways it reminds us a bit of that special moment in the late '90s when folks like Four Tet, Mum, Opiate, B. Fleishmann first surfaced, adding that emotional warmth to an electronic world which had been so cold for so long. We've been listening to this on constant repeat and the more we listen the deeper we get into loving what Pantha Du Prince is all about. Definite contender for electronic record of the year!
MPEG Stream: "The Splendour"
MPEG Stream: "Im Bann"
MPEG Stream: "Behind The Stars"

PANTHA DU PRINCE Diamond Daze (Dial / Kompakt) cd 16.98
The second of two long overdue reissues from this outsider avant pop techno technician, whose Black Noise record had us all in a tizzy, and any hope of that tizzy letting up went right out the window with the reissue of This Bliss, the -other- old title recently reissued, and now here we are with Diamond Daze, the second out of print PdP jam resurrected in the wake of Black Noise blowing up big time.
And like This Bliss, Diamond Daze doesn't deviate too far from what we loved about Black Noise, in fact all three records form this smooth, flowing continuum of blissed out minimal techno skitter, bleary late night pop ambient chill out, moody synthscapes, and throbbing, pulsing drone dance grooves. The weird thing is, if you threw some vocals on these tracks, you'd have a huge pop hit, Phoenix, Caribou, that sort of thing, but instead PdP takes these songs and strips them down, leaves them skeletal and abstract. Synths buzz ominously, beats skitter and shuffle, samples are looped and twisted, and stretched into streaks of washed out his, or lysergic shimmer, the result is not so much dance music or techno, but instead some sort of hypnotic trancelike electronica, a sound more conducive to blissing out, drifting off, than shaking it on the dancefloor.
That said, unlike the others, Diamond Daze features some seriously fuzzed out synth bass, that gives much of DD a way more fierce vibe, and while some of the beats do bang and boom, much of the record is more of a whisper than a howl, the darker more minimal tracks sounding like Kompakt meets Chain Reaction.
Another winner, a gorgeous fantastic, dark and haunting and mysterious collection of electronic mood music, and yet another nail in the coffin of any sort of techno hating we had hoped to ever engage in....
MPEG Stream: "Suzan"
MPEG Stream: "St. Denis Bei Licht"
MPEG Stream: "Glycerin"

PANTHA DU PRINCE Diamond Daze (Dial / Kompakt) 2lp 19.98
Now available on vinyl...
The second of two long overdue reissues from this outsider avant pop techno technician, whose Black Noise record had us all in a tizzy, and any hope of that tizzy letting up went right out the window with the reissue of This Bliss, the -other- old title recently reissued, and now here we are with Diamond Daze, the second out of print PdP jam resurrected in the wake of Black Noise blowing up big time.
And like This Bliss, Diamond Daze doesn't deviate too far from what we loved about Black Noise, in fact all three records form this smooth, flowing continuum of blissed out minimal techno skitter, bleary late night pop ambient chill out, moody synthscapes, and throbbing, pulsing drone dance grooves. The weird thing is, if you threw some vocals on these tracks, you'd have a huge pop hit, Phoenix, Caribou, that sort of thing, but instead PdP takes these songs and strips them down, leaves them skeletal and abstract. Synths buzz ominously, beats skitter and shuffle, samples are looped and twisted, and stretched into streaks of washed out his, or lysergic shimmer, the result is not so much dance music or techno, but instead some sort of hypnotic trancelike electronica, a sound more conducive to blissing out, drifting off, than shaking it on the dancefloor.
That said, unlike the others, Diamond Daze features some seriously fuzzed out synth bass, that gives much of DD a way more fierce vibe, and while some of the beats do bang and boom, much of the record is more of a whisper than a howl, the darker more minimal tracks sounding like Kompakt meets Chain Reaction.
Another winner, a gorgeous fantastic, dark and haunting and mysterious collection of electronic mood music, and yet another nail in the coffin of any sort of techno hating we had hoped to ever engage in....
MPEG Stream: "Suzan"
MPEG Stream: "St. Denis Bei Licht"
MPEG Stream: "Glycerin"

PANTHA DU PRINCE Lay In A Shimmer (Rough Trade) 12" 8.98
Latest single from this master of lush fuzzy minimal abstract techno, who along with Actress, Glitterbug, Walls, and a handful of other recent electronic alchemists, has had us flipping out over modern electronica again.
This 4 song 12" features the track "Lay In A Shimmer" from PdP's most recent Black Noise record, a hazy bit of skitter and chime, laced with handclaps and low end rumble, it almost sounds Christmasy, with its chiming melodies, but it's anchored by some sitar like buzz and dubsteppy bass warble, not to mention a production that sounds like it's nestled in a bed of Oval Diskont94's.
That track gets a gorgeous reworking, which on the surface doesn't sound all that different, but somehow the new version is more lush, the beats more propulsive, there's more swirling buzz in the background, streaks of glitch and hazy whirs drift beneath the skeletal beats and woozy basslines, the first half is a bit more blissy, and dreamy, while the second half is more dense and layered and a bit darker, really quite fantastic.
The two tracks in between sound like they could have come straight off Black Noise, "Sonnesturm" is a thick sprawl of gristly glitchy low end drift, big bassy rumbles underpinning long shimmery tones and tinkling windchime like melodies, before gradually blossoming into some Kompakt worthy, pulsing and loop-ed, minimal almost shoegazey housemusic, while "Ursonate 3" also begins in a cloud of glitch and static, before setting into a gorgeously washed out, muted and minimal late night bit of low slung post-house throb and skitter, chill out bliss.
MPEG Stream: "Lay In A Shimmer (Fata Morgan Versison)"

PANTHA DU PRINCE This Bliss (Dial / Kompakt) cd 16.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
After flipping out over PdP's Black Noise record, a gorgeous collection of lush minimal avant techno, that owed as much to minimal pop music, and avant garde soundscapery as it did to Kompakt or Chain Reaction, we became obsessed with tracking down the two earlier albums, Diamond Daze and This Bliss, but unfortunately, both were out of print, and available only for way too much on eBay.
Then whattaya know, a couple months later and both get reissued, and both are just as fantastic as Black Noise.
The template is the same, spares, spare, skeletal, minimal throb and pulse, click and skitter, house music, techno, the template is classic electronic music, but those tropes get all twisted up and remargined as something lush and otherworldly, sexy and organic, This Bliss couldn't be a more appropriate title for this record, as it is truly blissful. Not so much geared toward the dancefloor, this is like after hours chillout music, but imbued with light and warmth and energy and emotion, propulsive, but also washed out, hazy and shimmery, the sounds are prismatic and crystalline, makes sense that this would get reissued via Kompakt, as it's a pretty perfect fit, but unlike some of the Kompakt stuff, that can tend toward the clubby, the sounds on This Bliss remain rooted in sounds more minimal, and more abstract and avant, besides the muted beats, the swooshing ambience, PdP incorporates soaring strings, epic and cinematic, tracks are given the impression of motion, the soundtrack to speeding along some highway in the middle of the night, notes ring out, chiming bell like loops are layered and allowed to drift into the ether.
On the surface, the sound is definitely minimal techno, but it's so well crafted, it ends up revealing itself as so much more on repeated deeper listens. This is the sort of electronic music that could reasonable convert the skeptical, lure in the non believers with it's lustrous nuanced sounds, and gorgeously moody mystery.
TOTALLY RECOMMENDED. We think it's as good as Black Noise, likewise with Diamond Daze, which we'll review soon, and like This Bliss is destined to join the other two records on non stop heavy rotation around these parts...

PANTHA DU PRINCE This Bliss (Dial / Kompakt) 2lp 19.98
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
Now available on vinyl!
After flipping out over PdP's Black Noise record, a gorgeous collection of lush minimal avant techno, that owed as much to minimal pop music, and avant garde soundscapery as it did to Kompakt or Chain Reaction, we became obsessed with tracking down the two earlier albums, Diamond Daze and This Bliss, but unfortunately, both were out of print, and available only for way too much on eBay.
Then whattaya know, a couple months later and both get reissued, and both are just as fantastic as Black Noise.
The template is the same, spares, spare, skeletal, minimal throb and pulse, click and skitter, house music, techno, the template is classic electronic music, but those tropes get all twisted up and remargined as something lush and otherworldly, sexy and organic, This Bliss couldn't be a more appropriate title for this record, as it is truly blissful. Not so much geared toward the dancefloor, this is like after hours chillout music, but imbued with light and warmth and energy and emotion, propulsive, but also washed out, hazy and shimmery, the sounds are prismatic and crystalline, makes sense that this would get reissued via Kompakt, as it's a pretty perfect fit, but unlike some of the Kompakt stuff, that can tend toward the clubby, the sounds on This Bliss remain rooted in sounds more minimal, and more abstract and avant, besides the muted beats, the swooshing ambience, PdP incorporates soaring strings, epic and cinematic, tracks are given the impression of motion, the soundtrack to speeding along some highway in the middle of the night, notes ring out, chiming bell like loops are layered and allowed to drift into the ether.
On the surface, the sound is definitely minimal techno, but it's so well crafted, it ends up revealing itself as so much more on repeated deeper listens. This is the sort of electronic music that could reasonable convert the skeptical, lure in the non believers with it's lustrous nuanced sounds, and gorgeously moody mystery.

PANTHA DU PRINCE V Versions of Black Noise (Rough Trade) lp 14.98
Leave it to Pantha Du Prince to breathe new life into the often tired world of remix records. It was last year that we became huge fans of his, thanks to the amazing Black Noise album, which was a unanimous AQ favorite and got us to dig into his back catalog and find so much more to fall in love with.
While remix records can often sound thrown together and all filler no killer, Pantha Du Prince keeps up his commitment to excellence and for HIS remix record recruited talented folks with a wide ranging sonic scope, folks like Moritz Von Oswald, Four Tet, Animal Collective, Walls, and Die Vogel. It becomes immediately clear that all these artists really understand and respect PdP's aesthetic and they do such a great job of subtly accenting it and giving these tracks a new sonic coat of paint. Another problem with other remix records is that they usually don't have their own cohesive flow. But these versions work so nicely with each other and most definitely create their own late night seductive sizzle.
FYI, the cd has 11 tracks, and but the vinyl just 5, hence the differing titles (apparently some of the versions left off the vinyl, appeared on other 12"s...).
MPEG Stream: "Moritz Von Oswald The One version of "Welt Am Draht""
MPEG Stream: "Animal Collective version of "Welt Am Draht""
MPEG Stream: "Walls version of "Stick To My Side""

PANTHA DU PRINCE XI Versions of Black Noise (Rough Trade) cd 14.98
Leave it to Pantha Du Prince to breathe new life into the often tired world of remix records. It was last year that we became huge fans of his, thanks to the amazing Black Noise album, which was a unanimous AQ favorite and got us to dig into his back catalog and find so much more to fall in love with.
While remix records can often sound thrown together and all filler no killer, Pantha Du Prince keeps up his commitment to excellence and for HIS remix record recruited talented folks with a wide ranging sonic scope, folks like Moritz Von Oswald, Four Tet, Animal Collective, Walls, and Die Vogel. It becomes immediately clear that all these artists really understand and respect PdP's aesthetic and they do such a great job of subtly accenting it and giving these tracks a new sonic coat of paint. Another problem with other remix records is that they usually don't have their own cohesive flow. But these versions work so nicely with each other and most definitely create their own late night seductive sizzle.
FYI, the cd has 11 tracks, and but the vinyl just 5, hence the differing titles (apparently some of the versions left off the vinyl, appeared on other 12"s...).
MPEG Stream: "Moritz Von Oswald The One version of "Welt Am Draht""
MPEG Stream: "Animal Collective version of "Welt Am Draht""
MPEG Stream: "Walls version of "Stick To My Side""

PANTHA DU PRINCE & THE BELL LABORATORY Elements Of Light (Rough Trade) cd 14.98
Pantha Du Prince was a revelation to us when we first heard his music, another instance of techno for folks who don't think they like techno. But with Pantha Du Prince, the sound was less beholden to techno music, and more a sort of techno infused avant dream pop, a concoction of electronics, warm melodies, bells and chimes and dreamlike melodies, which reminded us more of groups like Fourtet or Mum, that same sort of sun dappled soft focus dreaminess. And apparently, actual bells were indeed a part of Pantha Du Prince's sound, so much so, that recently, he began to perform and compose with the somewhat tongue-in-cheek named The Bell Laboratory, a group of performers who play bells, cymbals, xylophones, marimbas and tubular bells. It's a sound Pantha Du Prince became so obsessed with, that he even had a massive carillon shipped to him to use.
So this new record is the result of this collaboration with The Bell Laboratory, and is essentially a symphony of metal, a sea of chimes and peals. In the opening track, the bell sounds are delivered straight and seemingly unaffected, playing out like some obscure composition by minimalists Steve Reich or Terry Riley, but then as the record progresses, PdP works his magic, and begins to weave those tolling bells, those cascades of metallic melodies, into dreamily propulsive rhythmscapes. For instance, on "Particle," only slightly removed from the opener, the processing is subtle, but definitely groovy, the overtones drifting forever, adding all sorts of tonal color to the proceedings, it's like a music box orchestra, until about three minutes in, when the first sign of a bassline surfaces, as does a more obvious rhythmic pulse, a house music four-on-the-floor, that hovers amidst a field of bowed metals, of keening drones, the bell tones becoming more and more clipped until they're almost unrecognizable, except for the hazy field of metallic shimmer that wreathes the dark housey groove.
"Photon" brings the bells back in, chiming over another woozy house music sprawl, the sound warm and rich, and again, the overtones drifting into lush, luxurious clouds of dreamlike sound, swirling lazily around the murky beat and slow shifting textures beneath. The record finishes off with another short bit of music box like mesmerism, this one a dreamlike stretch of chimes, soft focus metal on metal, that is utterly divine and dreamy, but before we get to that, there's the nearly 18 minute "Spectral Split," which starts out hushed and delicate, spaced out and minimal, before gradually building to a sort of warm swirling, softly psychedelic kosmische music, and then finally blossoming into a groovy stretch of warm, swirling, dreamlike house music, once again driven by xylophone melodies, and clouds of metallic shimmer, tolling bells, and warm rich reverberations, all above a blissed out trancelike groove.

MPEG Stream: "Wave"
MPEG Stream: "Particle"
MPEG Stream: "Photon"

PANTHA DU PRINCE & THE BELL LABORATORY Elements Of Light (Rough Trade) lp 16.98
Pantha Du Prince was a revelation to us when we first heard his music, another instance of techno for folks who don't think they like techno. But with Pantha Du Prince, the sound was less beholden to techno music, and more a sort of techno infused avant dream pop, a concoction of electronics, warm melodies, bells and chimes and dreamlike melodies, which reminded us more of groups like Fourtet or Mum, that same sort of sun dappled soft focus dreaminess. And apparently, actual bells were indeed a part of Pantha Du Prince's sound, so much so, that recently, he began to perform and compose with the somewhat tongue-in-cheek named The Bell Laboratory, a group of performers who play bells, cymbals, xylophones, marimbas and tubular bells. It's a sound Pantha Du Prince became so obsessed with, that he even had a massive carillon shipped to him to use.
So this new record is the result of this collaboration with The Bell Laboratory, and is essentially a symphony of metal, a sea of chimes and peals. In the opening track, the bell sounds are delivered straight and seemingly unaffected, playing out like some obscure composition by minimalists Steve Reich or Terry Riley, but then as the record progresses, PdP works his magic, and begins to weave those tolling bells, those cascades of metallic melodies, into dreamily propulsive rhythmscapes. For instance, on "Particle," only slightly removed from the opener, the processing is subtle, but definitely groovy, the overtones drifting forever, adding all sorts of tonal color to the proceedings, it's like a music box orchestra, until about three minutes in, when the first sign of a bassline surfaces, as does a more obvious rhythmic pulse, a house music four-on-the-floor, that hovers amidst a field of bowed metals, of keening drones, the bell tones becoming more and more clipped until they're almost unrecognizable, except for the hazy field of metallic shimmer that wreathes the dark housey groove.
"Photon" brings the bells back in, chiming over another woozy house music sprawl, the sound warm and rich, and again, the overtones drifting into lush, luxurious clouds of dreamlike sound, swirling lazily around the murky beat and slow shifting textures beneath. The record finishes off with another short bit of music box like mesmerism, this one a dreamlike stretch of chimes, soft focus metal on metal, that is utterly divine and dreamy, but before we get to that, there's the nearly 18 minute "Spectral Split," which starts out hushed and delicate, spaced out and minimal, before gradually building to a sort of warm swirling, softly psychedelic kosmische music, and then finally blossoming into a groovy stretch of warm, swirling, dreamlike house music, once again driven by xylophone melodies, and clouds of metallic shimmer, tolling bells, and warm rich reverberations, all above a blissed out trancelike groove.
MPEG Stream: "Wave"
MPEG Stream: "Particle"
MPEG Stream: "Photon"

PANTS, JAMES I Live Inside An Egg (Stones Throw) 7" 8.98
4 tracks of sci-fi chill-funk weirdness in the same vein as his latest full length, Seven Seals.

PANTS, JAMES s/t (Stones Throw) cd 15.98
James Pants last record, Seven Seals was a favorite for some of us here and while we thought he was going to venture into some far-off new territory with this follow-up full length, we were pleasantly surprised, though a bit perplexed, that he didn't. The songs still ride the gloomy new wave funk of Seven Seals, but it comes across as something you'd hear from the Captured Tracks label more than a Stones Throw release. The feel is less cosmically thematic and instead concentrates on truly well-crafted songs and catchy pop hooks among the murky lo-fi synth filtration. He has mentioned in interviews that he was inspired by Twin Peaks and '50s diner sounds, and there is definitely a creepy retro edge to even the most poppy songs, with elements of dubby ambiance and occasionally ethereal vocals provided by Lucrecia Dalt. But the more we listen to this, the more we're liking it even more than the last record. Its haunting pop-funk transmissions take time to weave their spell, but once transfixed, it's hard to pull away!
MPEG Stream: "Beta"
MPEG Stream: "Every Night I Dream"
MPEG Stream: "Screams Of Passion"
MPEG Stream: "Incantation"

PANTS, JAMES Seven Seals (Stones Throw) cd 15.98
It's apparent from Seven Seals that James Pants is one artist that does not want be pigeonholed. We already got a glimpse into his all-but-the-kitchen-sink approach towards cosmic funk on his Stones Throw debut, Welcome. But on Seven Seals, he takes us to a whole other universe, one where Vangelis gets high with Bauhaus and George Clinton while listening to Hawkwind. Seriously! And the weird thing is that it shouldn't work but it does! Pants is definitely exploring the gothier sides of new wave here with deep dour vocals but with an eye towards a dark retro-futurism and cosmic pop turbulence in the synth and rhythm treatments. Imagine Dam-Funk, Cold Cave and Neon Indian mashed together and broadcast out to a desolate planet where the atmosphere is really heavy and everything is silver, streamlined and egg-shaped and on the verge of being blown apart by cosmic forces. This is their soundtrack.
MPEG Stream: "A Chip In The Hand"
MPEG Stream: "Wormhole"
MPEG Stream: "Sky Warning"

PANTS, JAMES Welcome (Stones Throw) cd 14.98
Here at AQ have always been big supporters of most anything Stones Throw puts out. We get off on the dense, sample driven rhythms and beats from the likes of the late great J Dilla, Madlib, his brother in crime Oh No, MF Doom and the rest of the gang. They're untouchable. There's always bound to be pristine production and everything always fits in its right place, reviving forgotten gems and bringing them back to life with new meaning, new avenues of sound experimentation. They are truly in a league of their own! But one thing's for certain, they have been known to go a bit leftfield at times, straying from the vein of deep, hard hitting breaks and indie hip hop tunes, as they're mainly known for, with releases from artists like the more vintage punk driven Baron Zen, spacey funk pioneer Gary Wilson, Madlib's brokenbeat soul alias DJ Rels, and now... their latest attempt, Mr. James Pants.
Straight out of Spokane Washington, James' Stones Throw stint began as a position as a trusty intern at the office headquarters in Los Angeles, until he was finally taken in by his dream DJ, none other than label founder Peanut Butter Wolf as "the next big thing", with a long awaited offer to release an album. He's a goofy lookin' dude that seems fun to hang out with, which could easily relate to the music he produces. Actually, a friend of AQ grew up with him and he supposedly has a shitload of analog equipment in one room, and the majority of the time takes a non directional approach, simply "jamming out" improv style and once the arrangements are all melded together they blossom into an addictive psychedelic haze.
That's pretty much the gist of Welcome, it's a James Pants one man band, jam session. Full of layers upon layers of percussion, at one point it can be mistaken for various remakes of funky Fraggle Rock theme songs, the next it's drumless atmospheres of milky synthesis, and warm tones backed with random drops of spastic and muffled vocal samples, like unexpected crowd roars and yelps. He even sings/wails a bit throughout numerous songs which at times sounds like drunken howling, surprisingly fused into blissful, whispered singing and creepy vocoded melodies. Cosmic indeed, each tune is saturated with unexpected change ups and transitions. The instrumentation is a melting pot of space-y and druggy vibes, wah synths, harps, dubbed out wood blocks, and the occasional off beat guitar riffs. Picture an enhanced drum circle on Mars with guest appearances from Bootsy Collins and Tangerine Dream, far fetched, yes but listen and see for yourself. Stones Throw described it best, comparing it to '80s Soul, Electro Boogie, Early Rap, New Wave, and Post-Punk Disco, definitely one to check out!
MPEG Stream: "We're Through"
MPEG Stream: "Crystal Lite"
MPEG Stream: "Voodoo Caves"