Nekropolis / Peter Frohmader - Anubis Dance

Order Number ncd010

Retail Price from indie-cds.com site A$5.00: / Unit

On this fine album Frohmader combines elements of synthesizer work, samples, beats, and programming to amazing effect. One of the most beat centred of his albums, tracks such as the title Anubis Rising would be at home on the dance floor as much as a chill zone tent in an electronica festival. Strong middle-eastern flavours permeate some tracks the album. Powerful driving afro beats overlaid with glass-like synth fragments and mysterious semi-audible choral messages carry the listener into trance territories ...Excellent.

review from Dead Earnest website -"Brand new, largely self-played, totally self-composed, studio album of material recorded in 1997, and it's just incredible. Starts with a near eight minute track, 'Entrance', that features a vast array of sonic delights from electronics, samples and flute-like textures, but this vast assortment of textural and layered sounds on top of the most addictive, muscular set of electric bass, drums and tabla-like rhythms that you'll have the good fortune to hear, the effect a mix of almost Can-like intensity mixed with middle-eastern exoticism and much much more - a superb opener. The seven minute 'Anubis Rising' starts out with a seriously heavy flying rhythm from electric bass and drums as a river of electronic choirs, deep bass synths, more bass choirs, and electronics carve a path over the crunching rhythm section and the whole effect is simply amazing as the track catches fire and becomes a shining supernova of immense sound, depth, texture, layer and rhythm, this time a distinct African feel at the heart of the mighty machine - one scorching track and one you'll want to play over and over again. The near ten minute 'Initiation' sets up an equally flying rhythm from its array of drums and percussion, this time back by an almost sequencer-like deep electronic bass, while over he top you hear string synths, edgy percussion, vibes, dark electronic textures and a searing mix of violin-like sounds and tablas to give it a suitably exotic middle-eastern flavour as the rhythms ignite and the whole piece becomes a journey, a travelogue, of wide-eyed proportions, more swirling sounds than you can take in on first hearing and a joy to witness, climaxing in a hail of rhythms, throbbing synth bass, string synths and piano lines. Unbelievable!!! 'Ganesh' follows a similar course only here the rhythms are just to die for as the pace varies throughout, the feel dives from busy to African to languid ethereal and more as samples, voices, synths, deep bass synth textures and more soar over the mighty, mid-paced, solid rhythmic drums-driven bass, at six minutes an array of flying synths swooping overhead to put the icing on an already amazing cake, again so much happening it's hard to take in but the whole being greater than the sum of the parts as the piece just glides to its conclusion to immaculate extent. Another eight minute track, 'Visitation' starts a good deal more edgy as the mood seems to wande all over the place and even here the rhythms seem to be wanting to go in any one of several different directions, and the composition changes shape in chameleon-like fashion as it goes its merry way, the juxtaposition of drums, bass synths, sparkling lead synths, almost fusion-esque guitar chords that leads into an unexpectedly dark sea of space synths, is all just amazing to behold, the piece continuing to change shape before your very eyes, almost by the second. Totally original, definitely a success. The eighteen minute monster that is 'No Panic' covers all of the territories that I've mentioned and, without going into vast detail, commands your attention throughout to become another incredibly good track, this time more atmospheric a much as rhythmic, adding a new dimension to the proceedings. The final track - almost - revolves much more around the synths, the piece losing none of the magic from before and bringing the main album to a gorgeous and intense close. But we're done yet, as two extra bonus tracks - remixes of two earlier tracks with added drums - convert two already explosive tracks into two electro-industrial style pieces that are a whole new outlook on the compositions as you've just heard, and bringing the final proceedings to an intensive, foot-tapping close amid a sea of electronic, textural density. The production is first rate throughout, and it will take many plays to reveal all the aural splendours this album has to offer. Easily one of the finest of his long and rewarding musical career to date." - http://www.deadearnest.btinternet.co.uk