UK pressing for the elctronica act featuring Tom Holkenberg, known for his work with acts like Nerve and Fear Factory. A change of direction featuring more relaxed, electronic based songs where the effects are used to comp... more »liment the music not override it. Includes the track, 'Power Of BigSlacks (Reprise). 13 tracks. Universal. 2000.« less
UK pressing for the elctronica act featuring Tom Holkenberg, known for his work with acts like Nerve and Fear Factory. A change of direction featuring more relaxed, electronic based songs where the effects are used to compliment the music not override it. Includes the track, 'Power Of BigSlacks (Reprise). 13 tracks. Universal. 2000.
"Another great album fron Junkie XL, who once again partners with the Silver Surfing Rudeboy AKA Ronin to produce a second masterpiece of electronic musical artistry that really has to be listed in depth to be grasped. Powerful and fast-paced tracks like "Check your Basic Groove" and "Power of Big Slacks" keep you going, and the entire album sort of unfolds as one or two massive over-tracks as all the songs are made to flow into one another. The album has a few really long instrumental pieces("Power of Big Slacks (reprise)" comes to mind, at 11 minutes or so), but Junkie XL's talent is such that he/they can in fact manage to keep an 11-minute-long instrumental interesting. Songs such as "Zerotonine" and "Next Plateau" defy classification, spanning several genres simultaneously and producing results unlike anything else.In conclusion, another must-have work by this artist whose future is still very, very bright."
Boomin' Big Beats
latka69 | Boston, MA United States | 03/14/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Definitely a mix of a lot of other genres but done very well. I haven't run across anyone who's heard it that didn't like at least some of the CD. I would put this on the top of my "getting-out-of-the-shower-and-going-out" list."
Electro-Explosion
Tom.F | South Africa | 05/01/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I first heard "Action Radius" on Need for Speed Underground and it blew me away. XL's use of rock/punk elements spliced with Big-Beat and hard Techno grooves are amazing. Nothing I have heard in recent months comes close. In a world filled with Ushers, Britneys and J.Lo's, it is delicously refreshing to find an album like this. Look out for the "The power of big slacks," a symphonic master piece swirling with emotion! A big highlight!
Buy it, blast it, enjoy it! This album rocks!"
Finally some international recognition
M. Buisman | Amsterdam, NL | 03/08/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When Junkie XL came onto the music scene with 'Saturday Teenage Kicks' we in Holland knew we had something special. The two-man team of Tom Holkenborg and Rudeboy had already shown us what they could do in the decade before. Tom was a member of the bands Weekend at Waikiki and the industrial group Nerve. Rudeboy of course was the frontman of the now legendary Urban Dance Squad, that's right, the band Rage vs the Machine blatantly ripped off making them the worlds most unoriginal band.
Brilliant live shows made them a wanted guest at festivals and later with the Little Less Conversation commercial (with Elvis) more recognition came, also in computer games.
Rudeboy now has left Junkie XL and this album is their last work together, a great fin-de-siecle piece of music.
This CD does not have great songs like 'Billy Club' or 'Saturday Teenage Kicks' but the overall quality is outstanding. You almost feel like you are at their show. 'Check Your Basic Groove' is carried by a funky bassline and Rudeboy's shouts to awaken us all. 'Synasthesia' is a good piece of big beats with another melodic bassline. The song changed dramatically after about 3,5 minutes when it slowly drifts into a symphonic, almost new age like, piece. Strings, horns have a solo before they are mixed into the big beats again.
'Zerotonine' was the first single and is carried by little pieces of violin and Rudeboy's raps, like he also does on 'Legion' (with acoustic guitar)
And it goes on, there is not a bad track on the CD and it's a very worthy succesor to "Saturday Teenage Kicks".
If only there were more people as inventive as Junkie XL..."