From Mark Stevens Sent Mon, Jun 7th 1999, 21:14
Hello. The last in the Mask series? Well, it's certainly the biggest -- nine artists and ten tracks (although two of them are little fillers at the end of each side). Artists: Hakan Lidbo, D-Breeze, Post, SBA, Gescom, Hell Interface, Jacobean, Anodyne and Chaos AD. Musically, it's certainly odd. There seems to be a recurring theme of remixing 80s pop tunes. Anyway, here's a track-by-track rundown: Mask side, track 1 Punchy, TR808-driven electro with a warped rendition of the "boys and girls come out to play" and "ring-a-ring-a roses" nursery rhymes cut & pasted into the mix. Some crap, distorted EQ on the kick drum. Mask side, track 2 My vote for the Gescom track, on account of the snickering drum samples that I've heard on a few other Gescom tracks (although maybe that's a red herring). Stop-start pace, wibbling analogue whines and a distorted vocoder voice. Sounds a bit like a mutated Front 242 track. Mask side, track 3 Basically a nifty, confident remix of Midnight Star's 'Midas Touch'. Everything's kept simple -- punchy percussion and bass, some slightly detuned synth pads and some subtle distortion and hacking of the vocals deep into the mix. I'll vote Hell Interface for this one. Mask side, track 4 Mask side, track 5 500 side, track 1 500 side, track 2 500 side, track 3 500 side, track 4 500 side, track 5 -- Mark Stevens http://www.sonance.demon.co.uk/