UMO - UMO 2
UMO 2 may well be seen by future generations as a landmark album, successfully fusing the talents of at least five of the hottest names in electronic music into a beautifully crafted work.
Adel Dior and Jammin' Unit take most of the writing and production credits with the exception of six tracks which utilize the services of Khan, Terrible and Kerosene. Together they make up UMO (Unidentified Musical Objects) for this the second album which was recorded in four locations around the World.
The CD opens with a jaunty kind of reggae influenced piece with really transparent production job, in fact the production techniques employed throughout the entire CD are exemplary and will really give the novices out there a clear view of the sound construction process.
Before you know it track three slides into place with its disjointed spacey vocal samples and the bubbling percussion track. Again there's a maximum of space available which allows each individual sound to breathe and do its thing.
The idea of several artists coming together to produce an album certainly isn't new, but the ways in which this particular posse came together reads like a family tree with most of the participants having worked together on several other projects. Ultimately these kind of joint ventures help enrich the genre and I for one am looking forward to hearing the results of many and varied project partnerships.
Back to the music at Inner City Low Life which has one of the weirdest vocal lines ever heard. It works its way insanely through a minefield of sonic pops, squeaks and a grinding drum and bass track. There's also a solo made from harmonics which makes the whole thing even weirder. And finally Avus 80 which uses some of the most delightful analog sounds you could ever wish to hear. Listen out for the way in which digital sounds work with those ancient voltage controlled filters.
Rating - 879,661 (out of a possible 1,000,000)
