COLLECTION

Chad Jones contributes two-fold, first paired up with C. McRae to open the disc with an energetic Gone Postal track. Drifting tones and relaxed melodies are pinned down by relentless, driving beats that typify the direction of things to come. Jones' second appearance is in the form of Totemplow, his solo project, where he remixes a track from Mick Harris' Quoit. Thick, tense, abstract beat arrangements pound away, coated in the steaming sound of their own sweat. Cylon (aka Justin Broadrick of Techno Animal, Godflesh etc.) remixes another Quoit track, allowing more room for the cold, rigid atmospheres to stew behind the beats. A better idea of the pure Cylon sound can be gleaned from "Seeker," a no-frills mesh of intense, repetitive drum loops padded with dark backdrops and a fitting, intermittent sample of exhausted breathing.

This is the first Ocosi material I've heard since Simon Smerdon left the project to found Mothboy, with Paul Molyneux (who is also heard here as Blankmove) choosing to keep things moving solo. The short "Carrier" is easily one of the most infectious of these tracks, due in part to the predictable simplicity. A low key, 'funky drummer' loop is strung together over a bassy sound undulating in time with the beats and subtle washes of ambience. Mothboy is also represented with the frothy "Machine is a Fuckwit." If the divergence shown between these two tracks is any indication the pair's split is no real surprise. Here Simon throws a polyrhythmic base into high gear -- a spattering of beats with the hectic unity of a Jackson Pollock painting, melodies and horn samples adding a touch of colour.

Economy isn't setting out to gain acceptance with the rave/party culture, seemingly polluted with an importance placed on image and an abundance of trends. They're simply out to release great music that's lacking in outlets and strong in every other area. And with a price-tag true to the label's name you can't go wrong.

Ben Didier

With the launching of a new imprint, comes the first assault wave... "Economy Records Is a Sub Label of Manifold Records that features dark "drum&bass" material with ambient/isolationist tendencies." That said, meet the first batch of Various Artists signed on for the first raid. Economi$ed drops its payload of hard-hitting d'n'b style tracks, each laced with ominous vapors of menace.

Gonepostal unleashes the "musky message" of "Crocodile Perfume", powered by everchanging percussive attacks which are juxtaposed with buried flute textures. About 3.5 minutes into the track, ethno flavors emerge as does screaming guitar and grungy techno riffs... quite a nice piece of work! Invigorating "machine is a fuckwit" (7:57) features Mothboy's dramatically spattering beats and, eventually, serpentine sax riffs and other jazzy cues. The "just wanna wake up" sample of Blankmove's "dreamscar" comes dangerously close to being overused, but the background electrotextures and looping percussive elements are driving enough.

Subtle dark shades crawl over Ocosi's "carrier while the single unvarying beatriff plays over and over again; rhythmic, sure... but the "autopilot" feeling is disconcerting. Particularly clangorous thuds pummel "seeker" by Cylon (a.k.a. Justin Broadrick) as irradiated curtains waver throughout its bombastic duration. Cylon then remixes a track by Mick Harris (operating under the nom-de-d'n'b of quoit); "plug8 remix" is a battleground of rimshot shrapnel and bass thuds, temporarily fading to a quiet, though nonetheless sinister lull.

Quoit again is the remix victim, this time plundered by Chad Jones of Totemplow in the expertly-rendered drum, drone and squeal frenzy of "broken off" which pounds with intricate fury over a caustically simmering backdrop. Perky rhythms stir up the deep electronic ripples of "hypnostep" by PCM. With a high-stepping street-friendly tempo and brighter, glistening skies, "Never this lo" (3:23) from Otraslab is the least "dark" of the bunch, and is a favorite of mine despite (or because of?) this fact.

The ringingly quiet void which permeates of "subworld" seems especially pronounced compared with the tumultuous goings-on of previous pieces; amid sludgy bass goo and hollow dust-choked atmospherics, Nos beats furtively shuffle rather than power-slam. Another relative chilldown track, electro-industrial slowburner "to" from Su8m3rg3d drifts on screechy strands, a throbbing bassline, spaceship-landing effects and not-frenetic metallic clunks.

63 minutes of relentless drum'n'bass bludgeoning over dark electronic soundscrapes for only $9 postage paid... now that's Economi$ed! Likely too overbearing for peaceseekers, but you've got to admit the comp delivers what it promises (with a varying range of accuracy between the Various Artists) warranting a hearty 8.4.

David Opdyke (courtesy of Ambient Entrance website)