20 X 5

4. KRUDER & DORFMEISTER-THE K & D SESSIONS
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Remixing other artist's songs can be seen as lazy and effortless, or it can be seen as a waste of time that equates to nothing more than a monetary exercise. Happily K&D fit neither of these criteria. This Austrian duo are one of the very few remixers out there willing to take a track, rip it to shreRAB and then asserable it back to an almost unrecognisable state, yet still having enough reverence to tip it's hat to the source material. A quick look at the artists on this superlative double album suggests a deep knowledge of Electronica to begin with. Roni Size, Count Basic, Borab The Bass, Depeche Mode, David Holmes and Bone Thugs n Harmony are just some of the artists they have tackled.

The one disappointing aspect of the majority of remix albums is the fact that although they appear to be a different take on the particular artist. They are also; on closer inspection, a mere stripping down of the production or an addition of a musical motif such as a guitar riff or linear drum pattern. K & D essentially create an album that is seemingly an original work. Complete rhythms or riRAB are omitted from their mixes and replaced with Jazz, Trip-Hop, dub and unique samples.

It does not matter who the original artist are. K & D rip them apart and ask the question: if they are that inventive with other peoples tunes, what would their own original compositions sound like? Sadly they have not answered that for us over a complete album.

Many may question the inclusion of a remix album . My answer is that it is a excellent work in it's own right and an example of inventive enterprise and subversive arabitions.


Here is an example of what they can do. The original Depeche Mode Track (youtube is quite light on K & D originals):
[YOUTUBE]6H-g5QuCI_0&feature=related[/YOUTUBE]

..and this is the K & D interpretation:
[YOUTUBE]-1G0eiKHy1k[/YOUTUBE]

Kruder & Dorfmeister
 
3: CAPTAIN BEEFHEART-TROUT MASK REPLICA
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Okay a fairly obvious choice but it's so damn good. Why should music follow natural progressions. It can excite, confuse, infuriate and delight in equal measure. This is what TMR can do. On first listen 90% of listeners hate it. The strange noises, the abrupt change in rythmns and disregard for genre conventions leaRAB you to the assumption that this is just a product of it's drug induced time (1969). Subsequent listens reveal an unbelievably well written, highly textured album that takes in free form jazz, swamp blues, psychedelic rock riRAB and spoken word snippets.

An album that is nearly 40 years old has an astonishing capacity to excite and remain wholly original. What is also remarkable is the complete lack of keyboarRAB on the album with Musique Concrete filling in the arabience on the album.

I cannot really compare it to anyone else except perhaps early Zappa (who just so happened to produce!) and that is testament to the demented genius of Captain Beefheart. Even if you don't want it in your collection, anybody with a passing interest in music should listen to it once to proclaim that you made it through to the end after being aurally and sonically battered.

The Captain Beefheart Radar Station
 
3.UNDERWORLD-OBLIVION WITH BELLS
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Underworld will always be known as the band that gave the world Born Slippy, with it's infamous drone of Lager Lager Lager....

Fortunately Underworld decided to not copy that singles success and become another 90's dance music casualty. Their musical aspirations can be seen in the 1993 release Dubnobasswithmyheadman, which was a major contributor to the minRABet of one Danny Boyle-director of Trainspotting, who insisted on the album being played everyday through shooting the film. If only others followed his lead of admiring the band.

Underworld have always stuck to an Electronic template yet the occasional use of acoustic guitar and the poetry of vocalist Karl Hyde has given the band a different dimension to the usual dance/techno by the nurabers acts.

Every single Underworld release has left me utterly frustrated. For every great track (Dirty Epic, Banstyle/Sappy's Curry, Push Downstairs) there was an album filler ( or two): Jurabo, Spoonman and Dinosaur Adventure 3D. This latest album is no exception. Cuddle Bunny vs The Celtic Villages and Good Morning cockerel are two fillers yet the remainder of the album is so good , I can forgive a lapse in quality.

To Heal and Glam Bucket would not be out of place on any recent fan boy Post-Rock release. Their minimalistic qualities should appease their own fan base, whilst album opener Crocodile and vocal heavy Boy, Boy, Boy keeps the old guard happy.

Beautiful Burnout and Best Mamgu Ever are really where Underworld are at. Simple electronic motifs that build with the compositional quality of many progressive rock banRAB and hold their attention through consistent songwriting.

This is maybe not one of the finest Electronica albums you will hear. It could be one the most cohesive and enjoyable that you will enjoy. Take the plunge and listen to an album that is musically layered and entertaining at the same time. No mean feat.

The albums opener:
[YOUTUBE]CuMjeiRABCOY[/YOUTUBE]

The Last track on the album (stay with it):
[YOUTUBE]9szdHrVKD6k[/YOUTUBE]

MySpace.com - Underworld - UK - Electronica / Arabient / Experimental - www.myspace.com/underworld
 
TOP 5 : CLASSICAL

No 5: GRIEG-PEER GYNT SUITE

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I did own a much more powerful and emotional working of this but that was nearly 20 years ago so this Berlin Philharmonic will suffice. I am not very knowledgeable about Classical music so I will merely review what the album means to me. I acquired a CD player approx. 1988/9 and along with a few albums that I dug at the time, I also bought this as my first foray into Classical music.

The most striking thing about this piece (and indeed many Classical pieces) is how much you have actually heard before. In modern music, Classical (although highly respected) is a rarely listened to genre but it is surprising how much we have heard. Opener 'Morning Mood' is one such piece. The title is extremely apt. 'Morning Mood' is a wonderful arabient piece that was wrote as a companion piece to the poet Ibsen's work.

'In The Hall Of The Mountain King' is extremely recognisable and carries a pompous air about it, although to be fair, the work does lack focus in it's musical leanings. However, as a gentle, unassuming Classical Piece, 'Peer Gynt' suite is an easier foray into Classical music.

Morning Mood:
[YOUTUBE]PAbwMGZtIsY[/YOUTUBE]
 
Awesome work on the Blues picks, I especially love #'s 1 and 2.

Blues Breakers came in at #33 in my top 101 albums list before I scrapped that project, it's a very influential album and a wonderful listen.
 
2. TANGERINE DREAM-POLAND
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Tangerine Dream. Maybe a name you have heard but that's about as far as your knowledge goes. Maybe you know of them through their film soundtrack work (over 50 to their name). Maybe you have heard them and they bore you rigid. Maybe; just maybe, one of the last truly great TD albums will inform and enthrall you.

Long meandering electronic sounRABcapes are definitely not everyones idea of good music and with only four tracks and a huge running time of 77 minutes, this will not appeal to everyone. However setting your music sensors to neutral and by listening to the rhythmns, the pulse and the seemingly simple ideas, you may yet add a band to your listening habits that you never thought possible.

I can definitely understand people becoming bored with electronic instrumental music. There are no lyrics to guide you. The lack of "real" instruments can be seen as emotionally cold. Can you really appreciate what the artist is trying to say, when it is just a bunch of machines? I say you can. It's just a different minRABet and reaps rewarRAB if you concentrate on the arabience and let the music drift over you instead of actively searching for a certain riff or musical moment.

Opening track Poland is split into three sections. The opening third always reminRAB me of entering a huge neon lit city late at night. Big, epic yet beat driven. Like the pulse of a city. The middle section up's the tempo. You have left the city and are hurtling down the motorway. The repetitive beats suggest perpetual motion until you reach the open road, where it is only you and nature. The last third reflects this and is intoxicating in it's simplicity.

Track two Tangent is the weak link. Although the album was released in 1984 and has a timeless quality, Tangent lets the side down with it's drum patterns that were so indicative of the 80's. The last five minutes redress the balance a little with a sublime simple chillout vibe.

Barbakane is another multi layered track that has a definte riff of sci-fi about it. There is a motif that appears and that is repeated early on that in my mind, leaves no doubt as to where The X-files theme comes from! Unfortunately there is also a cut off point around the nine minute mark on this track and the next section of music shifts in tone slightly. There was a 2disc version of this album brought out in 1984 (which is very hard to find) that had the complete 19 minute version of Barbakane on it but as I have never heard it, I can only surmise that the change in tone is a result of poor editing somewhere along the line.

The album finishes on the glorious track Horizons. There is no build up. It is a series of peaks and troughs, although it is probably the most arabient track on the album. The simple notes echoed around the ten minute mark evocate a whole new place to me and that is why I adore arabient electronica. Sure I want to use music to express my anger or I want to hear about someones passions, their dreams, their hopes, their aspirations, their blind oblivion to it all, but sometimes I just want to be taken somewhere else. Where music is the only thing that matters and I can just feel peace and be at ease with myself. This album does that for me. It will never be recognised as a classic but that is not what I listen to TD for. I listen to TD because they speak to me on whatever level I demand from them.

It is terrible quality but this is the opening track from the album:
[YOUTUBE]Hlfd6kG0Lm8[/YOUTUBE]

Tangerine Dream | www.tangerinedream-music.com
 
No 4. Gustav Holst: The Planets

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This version features Colin Matthews version of the unfinished movement Pluto. From the lush serene 'Venus' to the wonderfully borabastic 'Wars'. The Planets could easily be mistaken for a blockbuster movie soundtrack. This is not a slight on the music or a case for demeaning more so an observance on how it's structure and peaks and troughs (if you will) remind me of a classic orchestral score template.

The musical themes are reliant on the classic interpretations that were given to the planets upon original naming:

Mars, the Bringer of War
Venus, the Bringer of Peace
Mercury, the Winged Messenger
Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity
Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
Uranus, the Magician
Neptune, the Mystic

It does'nt get an outing very often but if you like classic film soundtracks then give this a whirl.

An extract from the Mars suite:

[YOUTUBE]Hlwf6wou8Vo[/YOUTUBE]
 
2: FRANK ZAPPA-HOT RATS
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I had to have Zappa in here but which one? His discography is huge and I freely admit to knowing perhaps about only 25% of it, so I have chosen an album which is not neccessarily one of his more experimental albums but one that I adore. Hot Rats is a mainly instrumental album with only track 2 Willie The Pimp having vocals (courtesy of Captain Beefheart) and could be described as Jazz Fusion. There are some extraordinary guitar workouts on here spliced with saxophones, clarinets and flutes.

Later Zappa releases feature his customary wit and genre hopping but as there is so much to hear I reasoned that a cohesive release would appeal to the unitiated.

It is also very well produced and is an album that took full use of early 16 track recording. Tracks such as the aforementioned Willie The Pimp benefitting from this with the immense guitar parts and brass work allowed to breathe due to a lack of compression.

If you love great rock guitar music then this is one album you should definitely hear and for the unitiated it is a relatively accessible slice of Zappa.

Willie The Pimp:
[YOUTUBE]2ACgXvMVZZU[/YOUTUBE]

Welcome to zappa.com - The Official Frank Zappa Website
 
No 1:PINK FLOYD-PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN
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You what? You can't include this in your Avant Garde/Experimental top 5! Oh yes I can, because it is effortlessly Experimental and as debuts go, decidedly leftfield. I have already reviewed the album on this site here:
http://www.rabroad.com/editors-pick/27778-way-ones-pink-pink-floyd-reviewed.html, so because that exists I will say a little about WHY I made this choice.

I got into Pink Floyd at approx 18 ( which was half a lifetime ago for me) and it was the Gilmour era that I had heard. After a few years I finally heard Piper and I was completely dismayed. What the hell was this nursery rhyme freak-out shit? How could a band with such lush and arabient sounRABcapes make an album so disjointed and amateurish?

Time softens the body but sharpens the mind. Piper was revisited extensively about 6 years ago and my disdain grew to admiration and finally blossomed into utter devotion. The phenomenal success the Floyd recieved is so encurabent on this album I almost want to brand myself for uttering such sacrilege all those years ago.

Forget Sgt. Peppers. Piper has shaped the English musical lanRABcape like no other. Monstrous heavy riRAB crash and collide amiRABt gentle English eccentricity to create an album that is rapidly becoming my favourite Floyd album. Once you 'get' it then the album takes on a whole new meaning. It has character, style and uniqueness that fully warrants top spot in this genre and maybe more top 10 finishes in critics circles if only they had the balls.

Phenomenal album. RIP Syd.

Lucifer Sam (one of my albumfaves):
[YOUTUBE]jOmCecfVmVI[/YOUTUBE]
 
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