It's All About the Tracks on 5YGU
CloudMan | Vancouver, BC | 06/28/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Various labels are releasing two versions of a lot of their albums nowadays. One is unmixed (and usually offered on both vinyl and CD) and the other mixed by some random label producer or DJ. 5 Years of GU Music follows this trend also. This review is for the mixed edition.
As soon as I glanced at the track listing for both discs I knew I had to listen to this album. Sure I've heard most of them before, but never together as two distinct sets.
Disc 1 is pure progressive bliss and is the higher tempo of the two. Opening with the fantastic Remix [by Way Out West] of U.N.K.L.E.'s "Reign", the set is chalked full of good or great tracks for this genre of electronica over the last 5 years. I could have done without "I See You" by Sissy and the very out of place "Break My World" by Dark Globe. The mixing is terrible by the way, and this is typical where an album is also released unmixed. The worst example is the transition between tracks 14 and 15 on disc 1 and between tracks 9 and 10 on disc 2.
The set on Disc 2 features all ambient or downtempo tracks. If this is not your style, the album's cost is probably not worth it. As mentioned, the mixing was pretty bad on disc 1. Well the "mixing" on disc 2 is even worse and truely sounds like a basic 10 second fade was used for transitions. Sounds aweful, I know. However, I love this disc for what it is. A set of very good tracks. "It Was Late and Only 100k" by Francesco Pico is the only average track of the set. The others are above average or great in my opinion. 14 out of 15 tracks...not bad at all.
So poor mixing aside, this is a nice double CD album with two very different sets representing opposite ends of the spectrum that is Global Underground. Its strength is in the featured tracks themselves. Something that is lacking in a lot of electronica albums in recent years.
Disc 1 gets 4/5 stars, and disc 2, 4.5/5 stars."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1