ordinarily, when a collection starts off on the 'trip-hop' side, i pull back a bit. but from the first cut, this was no ordinary set. the inability to pigeonhole any of it is only one of passage's strongpoints. by the time i got to 'overpass' this collection owned me. as someone who has, and listens to EVERYTHING, it takes a special something to get me involved-in fact, i was designing a poster for a client, and would find myself stopping to look back at what was on-this is a work which conjures up many feelings- fro example, by the end of the opening cut, washes of projects like 'burial' were floating somewhere in the back of my brain. none of this is to say it SOUNDS like anyone else- its got its own integrity. essential stuff from monotonik. right up there with sleepy town manufacture. if these were monotonik's only two artists, theyd be one super label. great stuff, now get back to work with more. (i liked that reference to AROVANE in your website) all best stephen spera www.stephenspera.com this IS a passage 5 stephen spera 2006-10-17 18:44:18 2006-10-17 18:44:18 If asked to name my favorite netlabel release ever, I would probably name Esem's "Scataren" album. This album, however, ranks pretty close to that one and might even give it a run for its money. Like the Esem album, this is an extremely well written and produced melodic IDM record which often conjures up wistful feelings. This one differs, however, in having a more soulful feel on a number of the tracks, including some well done vocals on the track "Be Brave." Sometimes the music has an almost ominous feel to it, though never in a way that is oppressive or scary. Whereas the Esem album seems more like a trek through some exotic jungle landscape, this album, often through the effective use of sampled voices and sounds, gives the feel of being far more rooted in an everyday urban/suburban setting, though still giving a sense of the mysterious and beautiful that lurks within and behind the everyday reality. Excellent stuff. A contender for best netlabel release ever Gordon Hackman 2008-06-16 02:29:30 2008-06-16 02:29:30 5 2 5.00