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Top level
Music reviews
Review by Kompressorkanonen
Japanese psy-compilation featuring some of the scene's most established names.
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V/A: Sound of the Sun (Elejam 2002, EJAM-003)
1. Joujouka - Geo Crash (Joujouka 2002 Remix)
2. Snake Thing - Ride the Wild Pony (Shaven Mix)
3. FLR - Superheater
4. Prana - Taiyo (Joujouka and Snake Thing Remix)
5. Black Sun - Invisible Cities (Neuromancer Remix by Transparent)
6. System 7 - Teotihuacan (Pyramid of the Sun)
7. Artman - Prism
8. Robert Leiner - Solaris
9. Electric Tease - Malfunction
This record saw the light of day in september 2002, so strictly speaking, it isn't exactly new. However, it was a Japan-only release that was hard to come by on these shores, and I managed to obtain a copy only recently, after some rather extensive Internet searching. I thought it would be worth the effort (and the cash), as this comp features a line-up that looks impressive on paper, with such distinguished names as Robert Leiner, Ken Ishii, Nick Taylor, System 7, Youth and Tsyoshi Suzuki all contributing with exclusive material. However, that's sadly not the case - in fact, the majority of the tracks are juvenile, embarassing nonsense that manages to set my teeth on edge to an almost unprecedented degree. The standard is firmly set by the first two tracks by Joujouka and Snake Thing, as they're pathetic and awfully cliched "DJ tool" drivel that borders on hard house (although with a lower BPM count), with all the predictably brainless elements of The Cheesy Track: awful rhythm loops, daft in-your-face sounds, repulsive vocal samples, mind-numbingly silly hooks and plenty of cymbal crashes and drum rolls. Exactly what possesses formerly gifted producers such as Tsyoshi Suzuki and Nick Taylor (for it is them) to pollute the planet with such utterly soulless, disposable wank is beyond me; the amount of banalities here is so overwhelming that both their motives and their critical sense must be called into question.
And tragically, it only continues. Track 3 is by FLR which is Ken Ishii in disguise; another formerly brilliant producer who has seriously lost the plot lately. And as I feared, this is more of that horrible filter-house cack that he usually produces under that name. Then there's a useless Prana number in the same style as the other Suzuki/Taylor tracks, whereas Transparent's remix of Black Sun (aka Youth and Boris Sass) is a slightly more psychedelic, but still instantly forgettable tune. The first track resembling anything remotely interesting is number 6, by those old farts System 7; a nice enough psy-groove with Steve Hillage's characteristic guitar work on top. Competent, if nothing else. Artman's "Prism" is a rather pointless listening affair that meanders politely along without doing much, but luckliy, track 8 by Robert Leiner is better; at last, here's a veteran in the game who's still able to produce wicked material (but he must seriously stop giving away tracks to dodgy compilations... this surely isn't the first). His atmospheric and delicately produced prog-housey track "Solaris" has more depth and ideas in it than the rest of the tracks put together, but then again, that's not saying much. And frankly, it's nowhere near the galactic highs of his best stuff, and surely isn't enough to overshadow all the rubbish on this disc - particularly not when the closing Electric Tease cut is almost as poor as most of the other tracks on offer. Apparently, there is a market for this kind of music - particularly in Japan, I'm told - but unless you happen to be into this sound and don't mind listening to simplistic music in general, I suggest that you steer well clear of this record.
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Yoshi Matsumo
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26.01.2009 13:24
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Clearly you are unaccustomed to hearing good music? SUZUKI HAS A HUGE FOLLOWING! JEALOUS???
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