Council Meeting Memo #011

Various Artists: Touch 33 (Touch, Cassette)

Right, I know you people don’t have time, so I’ll make it quick. Koto Numariya’s piece is really zen. S. Eritrea really spun me out with ‘Chant’. The supreme Soliman Gamil comes close to stealing the entire compilation again! Fasil Kassa comes a close second. Lovely to hear Andy Warhol talking nonsense (he was a funny one). Meanwhile the parting triptych by Not I had me in hysterics! Prime Music for Prime Movers.

RVSHES: #25 — #30 (Re:st, EP)

Six sketches of finely crafted digital propulsion. All have merit, but go for ‘#29’ which basically channels Basic Channel to exemplary effect. ‘#30’ comes a close second with a most satisfying sub-bass pulse that sounds like you’re being poked in the ribs. The Peder Mannerfelt remix is expansive but strikes out.

DD 2: Infinite / Scattered Blue (The Final Experiment, Single)

‘Scattered Blue’ clearly rises high above all over offerings when it comes to driving melodic techno this week. With a riff that sounds like it would have come from a more chipper Jeff Mills and a satisfying pot-pourri of considered kicks, subtle snares and hyperactive hi-hats.

Nikki Nair: Shufflin’ (Lobster Theremin, EP)

Nicely clunky selection of oddball dance music. Nothing here fits categorisation which makes it tougher for the likes of me to describe with any great skill. Pick of the litter though is ‘I Can’t Stop’, which cheekily recreates the discordant lead riff off Altern-8’s ‘A D-8 With Plezure’ and abuses it for its own ends.

A Positive Life: Synaesthetic (Re:Discovery Records, Album)

With the interest in mid 90’s British techno seemingly at an all time high. It was inevitable that we’d get round to the genre marked ‘Ambient Dub’. I remember this being a predominantly Birmingham phenomenon. Clubs like Oscillate, labels like Beyond and bands like The Higher Intelligence Agency all hailed from there. Regarded as a high watermark for the genre at the time, ‘Synaesthetic’ has been lovingly reissued on vinyl by Virginia’s Re:discovery records. Distant memories of how great the album was are fully resurrected. And the kids will go crazy for the single ‘The Calling’ obviously, and quite rightly so. With its languid almost hip-hop tempo, catchy dub b-line and acid-house inflections, this track perfectly encapsulated the energy of that time and place.