Like the original, ONLY BUILT 4 CUBAN LINX, PART 2 sets the stage with the intro, but here, it's some Raekwon history courtesy of Papa Wu. On Part 1 it was fictional dialog introducing a loose concept album. Besides the introductory dialog and the album's look-a-like cover--tinted purple, as if it was a Cash Money, Screwed & Chopped mix of Part 1--the only traits this sequel shares with the original LINX is that it's the Wu-rapper in top form, spitting out rhymes worthy of the Wu logo and pushing his guest list to work harder, as evidenced by Ghostface, Jadakiss, and Cappadonna all sounding at the top of their game. The productions are equally magnificent with Pete Rock, the Alchemist, and even Dr. Dre all living up to their lofty reputations. Inspectah Deck and the Wu's secret weapon Mathematics out RZA the RZA on their 36 CHAMBERS-flavored cuts--the awesome "House of Flying Daggers" and "Mean Streets," respectively--but if it's possible to create a poignant beat track, it has to be the soulful loop on "Ason Jones," a tribute to Ol' Dirty Bastard made all the more moving when you notice the beat comes from the late J. Dilla. Raekwon's lyrical highlights come back-to-back as "Gihad" slaps the current rap scene for all its worth while "New Wu" with Ghostface, Method Man, and RZA on production renews hope that the Wu-Tang dynasty will return with a vengeance. If it looks long at 22 tracks, it'll still leave the Wu-heads wanting more. This sequel may have little to do with the original, but if the title helps to point out this is the Shaolin poet's best work since 1995's Part 1, then so be it.

  Fat Of The Land CD
  by Prodigy
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. Among the most anticipated releases of 1997, The Prodigy's third full-length album is a bulldozing rock-techno hybrid. But while the guitar/samples/hyper-beats mosaic that made "Firestarter" an MTV breakout are found in every nook and cranny of this album, the overall building blocks are far more diverse, making it a tangible melting pot of pre-millennium pop styles.

There's a definite hip-hop element here. "Diesel Power," which features quality mic control by Kool Keith (of Ultramagnetic MCs and Dr. Octagon fame), is new-style hip-hop sculpture, applying techno and acid-house textures to apocalyptic ends. Both "Funky Shit" and "Smack My Bitch Up" are throbbing dance-floor ejaculations wrapped around, respectively, Beastie Boys and De La Soul refrains. Kula Shaker's Crispin Mills adds vocals to an Eastern-influenced trance workout called "Narayan." All this adds up to proof positive that THE FAT OF THE LAND is just the tip of the iceberg.

FAT OF THE LAND was nominated for a 1998 Grammy for Best Rock Album.


  Kaleidoscope CD
  by Tiesto
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Fans of Tiesto's progressive-flavored trance anthems of the early-`00s were already well versed on the DJ-turned-producer's fondness for ethereal, siren-like vocals and epic-sized productions (best illustrated on female-fronted remixes featuring the likes of Sarah McLaughlan, Sixpence None the Richer, and Faithless). But, despite the relative pop leanings of such past collaborations, Tiesto never enjoyed major success beyond the club circuit. KALEIDOSCOPE, the producer's 2009 album, not only has its sights set on a more mainstream pop/rock appeal but--with guests spots from Bloc Party's Kele Okereke, Sigur Ros' Jonsi, and Canadian twin-songstresses Tegan and Sara--possibly beyond into indie credibility. Betraying the influence of the aforementioned Icelandic post-rockers, the album kicks off with the appropriately majestic "Kaleidoscope," a hypnotic, leisurely epic of dreamy synth pads and Jonsi's wispy falsetto. A consistent, dreamlike quality is sustained throughout, particularly on the piano- and breaks-driven "It's Not the Things You Say," featuring Kele Okereke, and "Feel it in My Bones," a gritty electro-pop ditty backed by the clean vocal harmonies of Tegan and Sara. And even if Tiesto's nods to dreamy indie pop and rock may be unfamiliar ground for his diehard trance and progressive followers, KALEIDOSCOPE contains enough unmistakably Tiesto-esque calling cards along the path that they're sure to enjoy the ride either way.

Q (Magazine) (p.104) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[His career] will be enhanced by this collection of stadium-size anthems, which proves almost as big a surprise as its guestlist.


  Walking On A Dream CD
  by Empire Of The Sun
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WALKING ON A DREAM is the debut album by Empire of the Sun, the Australian duo that includes Luke Steele of pop-rockers the Sleepy Jackson and Nick Littlemore of dance/electronica ensemble Pnau. Together they find a common ground between their stylistically disparate backgrounds, turning out tracks that incorporate both the psych-tinged pop sensibilities of Steele's previous recordings with the dance-driven snap and sparkling synth flavors of Littlemore's work with Pnau. There's a giddiness to the whole affair that lends a spirit of fun to the album, one that could easily appeal to a whole new audience unfamiliar with either man's past.

2008 debut album from Empire Of The Sun, a collaboration between Luke Steele from The Sleepy Jackson and Pnau main-man Nick Littlemore. Though the occupy the same aural terrain as bands like MGMT, Empire Of The Sun stand out in the crowd, chiefly due to their exceptional melodies and the fact that they don't take themselves too seriously. The spectacular album art was created by multi-Aria award winning design studio Debaser and will look amazing in racks and store displays. 2008.

Recording information: Soundworks Music Studio, Sydney, Australia.Rolling Stone (p.61) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "'Without You' evokes LABYRINTH-era Bowie with its deep, quivering vocals and loopy keyboards." Blender (Magazine) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "It will haunt your dreams. Acoustic guitars strummed in time with dance beats, tinny vocals and tons of slap-back reverb -- it's like some magical pop formula concocted long ago..."


  Autobahn CD
  by Kraftwerk
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Germanic in approach and delivery, this record gets under the skin and infuriates as you find yourself compelled to hum the melodies. A significant record in the development of electronic music, and not to be confused with other "kraut rock" efforts from the school of mid-70s prog, this is the album from which countless bands borrowed riffs--passages of the Cure, Depeche Mode, Joy Division, and New Order are to be found among the five lengthy tracks. Don't be fooled: Kraftwerk were there at least five years in advance. Great for driving on the motorway in Europe, incidentally!

Recording information: Kling Klang Studio, Düsseldorf.Spin (p.87) - "[The album] buoys jolly German-language lyrics over humming synths and creates the sound of the future." Spin (9/01, p.134) - Included in Spin's "5 Essential Krautrock Records" - "...A quick confection about zooming along the expressways of Germany....they'd discovered the joy of mechanical repetition..." Q (10/95, p.141) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...23 minutes of synthetically simulated road miles, with several fascinating segments and hauntingly lovely tunes....A remarkable journey--and one that needs to be heard on headphones..." Q (Magazine) (p.116) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "From 1974 to the early '80s, they were so ahead of the field as to appear almost superhuman, as instantly proved by the epic title track of 'Autobahn'..."

  Greatest Hits CD - Import
  by Lime
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Best Selling Hits Comp Of Denis And Denise Lepage, With All Remixed Or Extended Versions Of Angel Eyes / Come & Get Your Love / Take It Up / Your Love / Babe We'Re Gonna Love Tonight / Guilty / My Love / Unexpected Lovers / Gold Digger And More.

  Phaedra CD
  by Tangerine Dream
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Widely considered one of Tangerine Dream's masterworks, fallout from the sonic phenomenon that is PHAEDRA can still be found lingering in the ambient movement of the early '90s and in much of contemporary electronica. The aural architecture that the band built from scratch remains unparalleled. Tangerine Dream was truly ahead of its time-- the four epic-length tracks on PHAEDRA revealed a band that fully understood--and loved to manipulate--the complex array of knobs, dials, and switches that protruded from their synthesizer facades.

The title track is an almost spooky exercise in synth/sequencer tension and dynamics: while eerie atmospheres of Mellotron go head to head with spiraling Moogs, dense, humming sequencer webs percolate along the surface, motile and mobile. The album's closer, "Sequent C," leaves the listener breathless, as black electronic clouds form and dissipate and the surrounding space becomes corporeal sound. PHAEDRA remains one of the seminal recordings of the electronic movement, and stands up--even years later--as an original, stunning piece of music.

Tangerine Dream: Edgar Froese (guitar, organ, Mellotron, synthesizer, bass instrument); Peter Baumann (flute, electric piano, organ); Chris Franke (keyboards, Moog synthesizer). Recording information: The Manor, Shipton-On-Cherwell, England (12/1973).


  Emblem CD
  by Amethystium
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. Norway>’s Oystein Ramfjord has captured that certain magic and managed to; at a very young age create a project that is as mystical as it is melodic. The project, which turned into a 3 record trilogy was to be called Amethystium. Ramfjords vision was way beyond his years – as he created the entire first record during his teen years from age 16-18, and seeing it released on a national scale by the time he was 19. The record immediately gathered a fanatical and some would consider, a slightly left of center fan base. Images of Fairies, Dragonfly’s, and Tolkienesque’ themes were strewn throughout the arrangements and created a sort of Lord of the Rings like soundscape. The first three albums, Odonata, Aphelion, and most recently – Evermind came to be known as the Dragonfly Trilogy, named after the recurring themes in the music and the images of a Dragonfly’s journey and appearances on artwork.

Emblem (selected pieces) is a retrospective of, and more importantly a carefully chosen collection of Ramfjords most meaningful and inspired moments from each record. The songs are in no particular order in terms of time tables, or release dates, but rather, were put together to try and connect the three records and more or less create a beginning, middle and end of a musical story.

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