‘Speed 140BMP’ not as smooth as it should be
Music: Dance album mixed by Slipmatt worth buying but hardly a seamless effort
By VIM NADEMANEE
Staff Writer
Electronic dance music blooms in many different colors. It can
range from the rhyme and rhythm of trip-hop to the heavy, pulse-pounding
pace of drum 'n bass.
These days,
raves and New Age dance clubs emanate the sounds of trance and jungle,
while only a few old clubs still play the driving energy of hardcore dance.
Hardcore popular in the U.K. in the early '90s is still alive today, but
it too has metamorphosed into something different.
Dubbed by
European fanatics as "hard energy," this vigorous and hard mixture of beats
has thrown clubs all over Europe into a wild frenzy. Thus, with hardcore
energy rising fast, Moonshine Records, the premiere record company that
dishes out the Happy 2B Hardcore series, supplies us with this mixed set by
Slipmatt, one of the first DJs to perfect hardcore in the '90s.
In true hardcore
fashion, the beats are pumping right from the get-go. The sounds are
different from old hardcore, however, with the album taking on a more
repetitive overtone than other dance mixes. Unlike hardcore, which utilizes
a breakbeats style, hard energy involves a much more rhythmic and
repetitive four-on-the-floor beat.Thus, hard energy lends itself to be more
monotonous, and the music on this CD maintains a steady beat with little
variation.
The first track,
Slipmatt's own mix "Blue Shock," is a great intro track and jumps directly
into the fast-paced action.While this might seem to detract from the album,
Slipmatt has thrown in enough surprises and drops to make the album
worthwhile listening. A compilation of thumping tracks, the mix is
definitely worthy of the dance floor, though the mixes aren't as smooth as
they could be.While the tracks do flow, it is clear when one track is
finished and the next is starting. Such a procedure detracts from the
listening experience of the CD.
Nonetheless, it
is still an entertaining album, and while it certainly has its flaws, it
should keep any dance floor addict happy.Raw, energetic and lightning-fast,
this album is not something that all electronic music aficionados will
appreciate, but if you like something that's fun to dance to, pick it up
and give it a try.
Copyright 2001 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 144, No. 65 (Tuesday, December 4, 2001), on page 9.