seven

I can see why this cd caused such a furor when it got released back in 1997. to anyone coming from the world of techno this was truly shocking material that turned upside down conventional elements used in the genre, using them to create unique and very unusual compositions. on the other hand, to anyone coming from industrial background it presents an edgy experimental side of techno mixing in plenty of distorted mechanized elements with enough chaos and boldness to please any fan.

it all begins with “patterns” – an incredible mix of heavy saturated beats composed of processed bleeps, crunchy noises, squeals that break, turn and crush the listener leaving a bizarre aftermath full of broken analog treats. at times delicate string backed by soft keys emerges from this analog bubbling mass only to be demolished later on by massive overloaded percussion. a contrast between soft and warm melodic parts and chaotic broken beats is what makes this track truly amazing.

from minimal hypnotizing techno of “in-formation” disturbed by atmospheric sweeps and strange noises we move to “pure energy” that is very reminiscent of “shocking hobby.” same overprocessed, heavy breakbeats dominate the track, exploding and crashing through the layers of softer atmospheric elements.

pure analog bliss of “haywire” and “hayfever” is constructed from seemingly chaotic elements that are carefully arranged to create solid atmosphere built on ever changing mix of dense corroded breaks, almost junk-noise fuzzy bleeps, hisses and scratches and soaring organic passages. the harmony that they create is astonishing considering the fact how disjointed and different parts of the tracks appear to be.

most of the compositions on the album are separated by short “intermissions” when clean atmospheric strings prepare you for the next episode.

every track on this album is a witty play on the conventional techno themes, teasing and disturbing the listener, placing familiar elements into bizarre and completely alien context. the amount of changes, variations and turns within each composition guarantees that the listener will be back discovering more each time they play the cd. I like this release for its diversity and “warmer” atmosphere, something that later got replaced by intensity and darker edge that made “shocking hobby” and outstanding album. “public energy no.1” is more diverse and therefore appears less “solid” than “shocking hobby”, but both of them complement each other.