seven

it would be interesting to compare this massive compilation with previous hands samplers - "cave I" and "cave II". while "cave I" was simply outstanding for its time, cave II had a few average tracks that managed to sound a lot better surrounded by so many famous peers. the concept behind this double disk compilation was somewhat unfortunate, resulting in a second disk being a bleak shadow of very impressive disk 1.

fist disk opens with orphx, presenting two heavy and dense rhythmic tracks "halflife 1" and "halflife 3" that are a great combination of heavy pulsing hypnotizing rhythms and hissing, vibrating intense abrasive background; such a nice treat after "surface" that wasn't nearly that impressive. "halflife 2" is slowly moving mass of clicks, bleeps and deep bass presenting yet another side of the band.

proyecto mirage is a next pleasant surprise - the band has gained a much darker and heavier edge, while still retaining plenty of funky noises, bleeps and textures, making their three tracks truly a great listen with completely unique atmosphere. corroded rhythmic patterns of "san marcos xiii" are unexpectedly heavy; "snuff" continues with the same style of overloaded explosive percussion mixed with atonal strange frequencies; bizarre atonal noises disturb the drive of equally strong and strangely melodic(!) "don't dream."

continuing are the heavyweights of the genre, winterkalte. precisely manipulated sounds of "toxic hotspot" are not usual monstrously fierce pummeling chaos of winterkalte, but a rich texture built with distorted, compressed percussion, that is a lot more "user-friendly"; breaking, sliding, reverberating "desertification" reminded me of famous "incinerator," with more prominent mechanized rhythmic part. "tropical timber trade 2000" follows, a nice variation of the sweeping toxic chaos of the original track.

ms gentur is one of those bands that I have learned to appreciate a lot more after my initial disappointment with their sound. starting with "fuelled" featuring heavy metallic percussion with distant string - an incredibly nice balance, this track is almost an opposite to mechanized chaos of "poly tox" filled with sharp metallic splinters backing high-bpm bouncy yet pleasantly heavy percussion that once again resurfaces on explosive "rough'n'gruff."

dark groove of "needle sharing" with its dislocated drum&bass flavor made a nice closing for this disk. bouncy, heavy, simple yet driving, "trip" is followed by dark and somewhat funky "yellow pages"; live version of "speed bitch" closes the first cd with aggressive, distorted sound strangely reminding me of dhr-like punk-sounding sonic escapades.

second disk starts with surprisingly weak nkvd tracks that lack the direction and originality that the band was known for; they feature a lot of cool sounds and textures, but fail to create complete finished tracks. next is typhoid, that I have already heard on "xxxd generation" sampler from unit, where they presented equally bleak and "flat" -sounding drum&bass that does possess a distinct sound and few cool elements, but is a little too monotonous and minimal (for this genre) for me to enjoy.

somehow ah-cama-sotz did not impress me much as well, after very impressive "house of the lordh" "black hole" was a little too ambient and not rich enough, torment mix of "lustt" was overly monotonous and unimaginative. only "place de greve" was somewhat pleasing with its nicely arranged heavy crashes and mysterious demonic fading noises; but I still did miss elegancy and richness of ah cama-sotz.

organic ambient of xabec has a peculiar and refreshing feel to it, demanding a lot of concentration to enjoy it fully, something I could not master completely by now. schtanlage gegenort closes the disk with its own brand of heavy dark ambient with occasional rhythmic breaks; it sounded to muddy and unstructured for me to get into, or maybe the excellence of the first disk still haunted me at this point, raising the standards too high.

despite somewhat unfortunate combination of weaker tracks on second disk, the compilation is certainly a milestone and a standard-setting release, heavily focused on rhythmic/technoid noise. its impact and popularity should follow the one of equally strong "teknoir" compilation released last year. now that hands finally got a website, the label should get more recognition that it certainly deserves.