Electropolis

Amazon.com
Compilations are usually the TV dinners of musical releases. Yeah, you'll get your Salisbury steak, but you know the peas are lurking in the next compartment. Well, Electropolis, Metropolis Records' first various-artists collection, mostly steers us away from the wilted veggies and offers some tender meat to chew on. The disc is really almost a who's who of '90s industrial dance music, with many of the genre's four-star chefs making an appearance. Front Line Assembly whip up a previously unreleased drum & bass-inflected track that wouldn't have been out of place on their FLAvour of the Weak album; :Wumpscut: bring to the table a German version of "Soylent Green"; and we are treated to tasty tracks from Haujobb, Evil's Toy, Funker Vogt, and Mentallo & the Fixer. The other cuts? Well, they come mostly in the form of lumpy mashed potatoes (Thinkingman, Out Out) and overcooked rice (the usually strong In Strict Confidence). Oh, well. If you can't stand the heat... --Steve Landau

Tracks:

Things To Come (Make Love Not War Mix) - Informatik
Murderers Among Us (Exclusive Mix) - Mentallo & The Fixer
Static - Numb
Triumph Of My Will - Ikon
Near (Bandilla Dream Mix) - Apoptygma Berzerk
Order And Joy (Exclusive Mix) - Crocodile Shop
Martians On The Moon (Exclusive Mix) - Funker Vogt
Flucht (Front Line Assembly Rmx) - Wumpscut
Eclipse (Exclusive Track) - Kevorkian Death Cycle
Headhunter (Aghast View Rmx) - Front 242
Learn To Live (Exclusive Track) - Front Line Assembly
Masterslave (Wumpscut Remx) - In Strict Confidence
Temper Of Poseidon (Exclusive Track) - Project Pitchfork
Now This Is Human (Exclusive Track) - Diary Of Dreams

Customer Reviews:

Martians on the Moon!.......2003-03-21

When I first looked into Metropolis Records and the variety of artists they offered, I found myself impressed with many of them but not wanting to sort through these names at once. Still, I found that Metropolis was kind enough to understand my laziness, putting out samplers that could be really helpful when needing to know what a band sounds like - especially if you have to have constantly new sounds ringing in your listening ears. Moreover, the samplers, especially the ones wearing the Electropolis and Critical Mass logos, are done in such a way that they provide a little bit of everything on the EBM side without slighting you with anything particularly vile. To me, that's an important part of constructing a mix album.

Within the confines of this release, there are a few exclusive remixes and, for fans of Funker Vogt, and exclusive track that I found pretty entertaining. The vocals on this FV piece are HEAVILY distorted, to the point of forcing one to listen carefully to actually understand what its about, but deciphering it and finding out that it was about Martians and space conquests was actually entertaining and odd for them. This did fit into their war theme a bit, I suppose, but it seemed to be them having a little fun and doing what they wanted to do at the same time. Also included is a great track from Informatik that uses heavily voxed beats while proclaiming that war changes nothing, the Mentallo and the Fixer track that isn't as experimental - and for people just now looking into them, they are really on the experimental side of the rainbow - but is notable and pretty heavy at the same time, a Numb song that ranges in some of their better (but not best) work, the always enjoyable Apoptygma Berzerk that doesn't fit into the heavy or voxed range of motions but that does craft great EBM sounds with good lyrics and vocals, some darkly overcast Wumpscut addition that is heavier than the norm they put out, and others that would be worth looking into.

For anyone that likes EBM music, electronica, and the collision of political messages in their clouded, angry skies, then this would be something to look into. It has quite a few things to offer int he way of sampling, letting a person check out what they want to buy or what they wouldn't be interested in, plus the quality of the tracks herein is a cut above the normality of samplers. Also, it has a Funker Vogt song that is commendably done and that can't be found anywhere else, so my recommendation is to buy and learn about interplanetary conquest.

Great for any RiViThEaD!.......2001-07-10

Why would you not want this CD? For the Prodj. Pitch and Mentallo & the Fixer songs alone...it is worth it! Then they throw in Frontline Assembly, Wumpscut, and Front 242 tracks for good measure! I guess the only thing to tell you it that it's a bit on the heavier side of industrial (puppy, leatherstrip), rather than the etherial side (delerium, die form). If you like Project Pitchfork and FLA, then this CD is a VERY safe buy!

Average customer rating:

Electropolis
Electropolis
Manufacturer: Innova Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Jazz | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000BMSTYG
Release Date: 2006-02-07

Tracks:

Scorched
The Slider
Sailing The Flat Earth
Recliner
Naughty Maria
Dagobah
Blue Omni
Ouch Not Again
Lead Soldiers
Bat Soup
The Little Red Blinking Light

Album Description

It's funky and soulful, while still riding a quirky jagged edge. Think James Chance-type energy but smoothed-out, Bill Laswell-style. Or maybe Parliament meets Naked City in a back-alley rumble refereed by MMW. This is music that gets stuck in the land of dreams and toys with your resless leg syndrome. Unconventional though it may be, there are no overdubs or guitars on this record. Some of the tunes were composed right there on the spot, first take, no looking back, but they still retain a tight pop aesthetic. Remixed by NEVERWAS (Chris Cunningham) known for his work with James Chance, Gavin Friday, Hal Willner, Anton Fier to name of few. Cover art done by Winston Smith (Deady Kennedys, Green Day etc).

Average customer rating:

Twining the Threads of Genres
Broaden Your Horizons
A wonderful Metropolis sampler

Electropolis
Various Artists
Manufacturer: Metropolis Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Compilations | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

1990s | By Decade | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Blues | Indie Music | Stores | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Indie Music | Stores | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Indie Music | Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Electropolis, Vol. 2
Critical Mass, Vol. 4
Critical Mass, Vol. 2
Critical Mass

ASIN: B000006FBY
Release Date: 1998-06-30

Tracks:

Bliss (Unreleased) - Front Line Assembly
Blood (Crash And Bleed Edit) - Numb
Soylent Green (German Lyrics) - Wumpscut
Entropy (Unreleased Track) - Informatik
Vision (Metro Mix) - Mentallo & The Fixer
Screaming Saints (Numb Remix) - Thinkingman
Futile (Version 9D) - Out Out
Backwards Effigy (Unreleased Track) - Terminal Sect
Il Mostro (Unreleased Track) - Necrofix
Prediction (Extended Mix) - In Strict Confidence
Killing Fields (Guitar Fixer Mix) - Funker Vogt
Organics (Slow Motion Mix) - Evil's Toy
Time Is Elastic (Unreleased Track) - Haujobb
Born To Be Mild (Overture) - Snog

Amazon.com

Compilations are usually the TV dinners of musical releases. Yeah, you'll get your Salisbury steak, but you know the peas are lurking in the next compartment. Well, Electropolis, Metropolis Records' first various-artists collection, mostly steers us away from the wilted veggies and offers some tender meat to chew on. The disc is really almost a who's who of '90s industrial dance music, with many of the genre's four-star chefs making an appearance. Front Line Assembly whip up a previously unreleased drum & bass-inflected track that wouldn't have been out of place on their FLAvour of the Weak album; :Wumpscut: bring to the table a German version of "Soylent Green"; and we are treated to tasty tracks from Haujobb, Evil's Toy, Funker Vogt, and Mentallo & the Fixer. The other cuts? Well, they come mostly in the form of lumpy mashed potatoes (Thinkingman, Out Out) and overcooked rice (the usually strong In Strict Confidence). Oh, well. If you can't stand the heat... --Steve Landau

Customer Reviews:

Twining the Threads of Genres.......2003-03-22

When I first started bringing Metropolis albums to my home, it was a hit or miss process that I wasn't sure of and that I sometimes found myself regretting. Granted, they do produce some of the best music in the world when it comes to EBM acts, but randomly picking and choosing personas to bring into the fold wasn't the best way to taunt the day. Then, by some freak chance, I bumped into my first Electropolis album and found that there were a few bands I hadn't tried here, that some people I had made rash judgments on were actually a lot better than I had given them credit for, and that this form of electronic music encompassed more ground than I thought. While on the heavier side of the EBM rainbow, most of the acts here are pretty versatile, and the coverage of the sampler is good and allows a little bit for ever taste that cares for techno/industrial/EBM dancefloor melodies out there.

Many of the tracks on the album bear noting because they are pretty creative and are actually enjoyable to listen to. Front Line Assembly's Bliss, sculpting an exotic plateau that isn't as dark as their normal works but that still carries its weight, joining Numb's Blood, perhaps their best work ever because of the voxed lyrics and the heavy yet darkly contrived sounds, the heavier sounds of Wumpscut's Soylent Green (in German), Informatik's Entropy that flashes me back to a time when all their words were voxed and all their sounds seemed possessed by shadows, Mentello and the Fixer's almost screamed vocals on the distortedly heavy Vision (some don't like the remix, but I thought it was good), an older Funker Vogt release that still wears their heavier sounds, Terminal Sect's slower BPMing Backwards Effigy that becomes catchy after a few listens, and others as well. This isn't to say that everything is perfect on the album because it isn't, but it does state that, in the world of samplers, it is a cut above the rest because of its listenability.

For anyone wanting to look into some older Metropolis releases and experience some of the heavier sounds resting on the steps of electronic angst, then this would be something worth checking out. There are quite a few bands here that have the ability to hook their listener, plus many of them have something - albeit dark most of the time - about the world and its sociopolitical ways of running things. It, along with quite a few other Metropolis albums, comes highly recommended.

Broaden Your Horizons.......2001-08-31

This compilation by one of industrial musics premier record label's, Metropolis, offers up almost every important band in modern EBM / industrial dance. You have some staple acts like Front Line Assembly (with what was probably an unreleased song from FLAvour Of The Weak) to :wumpscut: (a Soylent Green in German). Both of these tracks are worth full price of the CD. But wait, there's more!
There's a remix of Numb's dark and evil 'Blood' from their Wasted Sky release. Da5id Din's Informatik offers up 'Entropy', an excellent track. Numb remixes Thinkingman's 'Screaming Saints' to abrasive perfection while In Strict Confidence offer an extended mix of their awesome 'Prediction'. Out Out, Terminal Sect, Necrofix and Evil's Toy all serve up some great industrial tracks, making this the best compilation CD I own.
Weaker track that I found (or ones that didn't suit my tastes) were Mentallo & The Fixer's remix of 'Vision'. I really like MATF but this mix really seems to have no direction. I am not a big fan of the techno side of industrial, but if you do, Funker Vogt's 'Killing Fields' would definitely be for you. Haujobb and Snog are both bands that I'm not too fond of either and these tracks are exemplory of the music they make. If you like these bands, this would be good for you.
Basically for the average industrial fan, this CD is all hit-no shxt. Highly recommended.

A wonderful Metropolis sampler.......1999-08-21

This is a great collection of industrial, whether it's for the purpose of introduction or collection. This album has enough remixes and unrealesed goodies, like Wumpscut's German Soylent Green, to satisfy the jaded listener. I was glad to hear the established acts like Numb and Mentallo along with a couple of lesser known bands. All the songs are great - I love Snog's Born to be Mild, and the FLA instrumental is priceless. Thanks go to Metropolis for a great album.

Album Review:

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