"After a 22 year lunchbreak we are back with an eclectic album that ranges from lo-fi ambient to full-on Electronica" – so the introducing statement out of this release. Well, I should admit that I’ve passed this British sensation – since they’d released their first recordings 22 years before, I was still consuming the happened Pop/Wave art of those days – but without any knowledge that they were one of the outstanding parts of it. The duo of TIK & TOK have had their heydays during 1982 – 1984 with the release of a few 7" Singles and an album entitled "Intolerance". This album later got re-released under the same title as a kind of "Best of..." collection. The current times seem to be right for the both protagonists behind TIK & TOK, also the laptop-oriented technically evolution made it possible, that they now return after this unexplainable long period in hiatus – let’s say that a "lunchbreak" normally wouldn’t take so much time...:-). Was TIC & TOK’s music to the early 80ies already timeless and futuristic oriented, this can be also said on their new recordings. The provided style description of TIK & TOK’s music efforts in 2K7 fits relatively – you won’t get a pure retro 80ies Wave-Art album, it is a rather well tuned Electronica album heavily inspired by the modern technology of a virtual, laptop-based music studio. Diversity is the name of their game here, it seems they feel comfortable to deal with every electronic-based music style. For some tracks they draw inspiration out of several travels to cities like Chicago, Tokyo, Paris, Münster and Rijswik. Mostly the tracks offer a lot of space for filling instrumentals ("Your Face Or Mine?"), their vocals seem to be rather a background instrument. Some stylistically excursions are featured as well, with "Tokyo Girl" into the Synthpop genre, or with "Dangerous Curves dangerously near to a perfect Rock/Pop radio-compatible piece. They received some help of THE SEPIA providing a remix on "Intolerance V", also the skillful hands of the UK-based ALIEN 6 (Geoff Pinckney/THE NINE and Pete Steer) are at work here doing some mastering and co-production. This is a damned quality full-length album by a veteran act with a historically meaning, which avoids any cliche-loaded categorization into genres – it rather breaks with known boundaries, which explains the purest entertainment from the first to the last tune.

"FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY reclaimed its throne last year with the release of "Artificial Soldier" and the world tour following it". This is the quotation of the first sentence out of the info sheet attached to FLA’s new EP "Fallout". To me "Artificial Soldier" was rather a hard ship mostly for the European audience which always have fount more appreciation to the electronic side of the band. At least "Artificial Soldier" was the result of the integration process of four different musicians which still had to grow to a fruitful unit. "Fallout" picks up the musically tendencies, where "Artificial Soldier" has stopped – it is rather the remix companion release to the last years’ album. So you’ll get some international renowned names taking care on the FLA recordings like COMBICHRIST, PORTION CONTROL, COVENANT or people like Sebastian R. Komor (ICON OF COIL, ZOMBIE GIRL), Jason Novak, Dan Kearley or Greg Reely, who also did the completely mixing. 9 remix works at all plus three new tracks, which all promise a lot for some future recordings of the band are filling this EP and turn the playing time to more than 70 minutes. Veteran EBM fans of the Canadian heroes will surely dig the COMBICHRIST remix on "Beneath The Rubble" the most, thanks to the fact that it avoids all guitar sounds and offers that melodic synth layer sounds, which made FLA that known and appreciated. Another EBM purists favorite will be the new track "Electric Dreams" – remarkable bass line, Alien-like vocodered vocals by Bill Leeb and again another outstanding synth layer programming. Also the youngest and new FLA band member Jeremy Inkel seems to have a pepping influence on the veterans Bill Leeb, Rhys Fulber and Chris Peterson – just check out the "Anti-Social-Mix" of the track "Social Enemy" – a speedy Industrial/Techno-driven monster which kicks your ass toward the dancefloors. Also the new track "Armageddon" got produced by Jeremy together with Bill Leeb and this one offers a better continuation to the "Artificial Soldier" tracks – the guitar sounds are included as well. Another proof for Jeremy’s fine talent is the last track here, the raging instrumental track "Unconscious", which he has produced together with Rhys Fulber. FLA’s successful return has a common way with the integration of Jeremy Inkel to the band, no doubt on this. The so-called throne (see above...) is in sight again and this EP is a perfect teaser to the coming world tour and the uncountable live gigs on the coming summer festivals. A must-have release for all FLA fans, be it veteran and/or newbie.

The second album by this Israel/Amsterdam trio serves up 11 brilliant dark and beautiful tracks that's captivating and emotional with heart. Sophya will draw you in and transcend you to their world. The composition is very well composed and produced. Music described as being arranged with contemplative thoughts with scrupulous that mesmerize. "Dream" is a cross between the Cocteau Twins and Clan of Xymox. Wonderful ethereal dreamy vocals by Sonja Rozenblum and dark male vocals by Idan Karuthchi. The album tends to exceed the attention and to be exceptional. Perfect album to enjoy listening for pleasure and/or to escape to another world. Astonish record accomplished with heart and soul. Outstanding tracks are "Never Again", "Captive Beauty", "Blossom", 'Fear" and "The Games They Play". The "Dream" album is a fine effort that shows what can be done with darkwave in a good fashion way of gloomy style.

Since these guys are news to me, I’ll open this review with a quote from their one-sheet- "Hop-frog’s drum jester devotional is the brainchild of one of the founding members of the hop-frog kollectiv, e.loi, aka Jeremy Morelock and features core members of the hop-frog kollectiv. After numerous compilation appearances and vinyl releases, Morelock unveils Drum Jester’s debut album, Bets Ov., Vol. 1 with psychedelic, Broken- Dub, MIDI-Eastern, Post-Asiatic madness like no other."

Okay, I can dig that, even though I’ve never heard of the Hop-Frog Kollectiv before. And you know, when I first started listening to this CD, I really kind of liked it. Very different. There was a group a long time ago called the Third Ear Band, a strange acoustic outfit that was one of the first modern groups to use a middle-eastern motif in their music. The first track here, "L’amour Du Nil" (I’ll dispense with the mix & version tags which every track seems to have) reminded me a lot of them, but with more radical percussion touches. It’s trancey, hypnotic, and even at 7:39 with not a lot of variation except the percussion fills in the middle is still not boring. After that though, things begin to get strange... very strange. "Eastern Spleen 3" showcases Hop-Frog’s Moroccan Jujouka influences, with some rather sloppy big beat kit drumming added (loops?) and a slide whistle break with a sampled voice repeating "You’re god is a bore... like a tortoise.." This got old pretty quick, and over six minutes of not much else happening I lost interest.

"Love In A Minefield" combines a reedy Indian shenai melody with some mild processed l percussion loops, then a bit of processed tabla with occasional worldless female vocals. Not bad... doesn’t go anywhere but doesn’t have to. "Devotional Desert" sounds like a trip to a Moslem city on acid. This is where things get really trippy. I swear I hard something like this on a soundtrack to a 60’s drug movie, or maybe it was an East of Eden album... Once again the trance element (not like "dance-trance", although you probably could dance to it) is solidly in place in the repeating patterns of the great cosmic awl. (Did I just say that?)

You know, I wish I had heard this album when I was in Amsterdam a month or so ago. I really would have had the means to deeply appreciate it. I realize now, that these guys must have access to some great weed or other psychoactive substances to produce this kind of music. Stoners are going to LOVE this album! "Another Intricate Gem of the Mouthfrothian Liberation Front" has some very good downtempo elements going for it, Thievery Corporation style. Simple guitar, bass, drums, sampled string, a burbbly synth effect with this exotic female choral vocal that is just right for the track. But like the first time you try a soup recipe, it needs a little something- maybe a different break, maybe just a shorter length. Maybe a tad too much fenugreek, I guess.

"Elephants Agony" has that oft used sampled native children chant heard in so many world music hybrid-crossover projects. Would’ve been okay if they dispensed with it after the beginning and filled in with more musical elements, but the loping, plodding rhythm was nice and elephant-like. Well, the song IS about stopping an elephant dead in her tracks, but with an overuse of repetition again, it bordered on "Listener’s Agony". It took me this long to realize, I could expect most all the tracks to be rather repetitive. At least the next one, "You Can’t Do That To Me, I’m An American" had a lot more going on so it wasn’t as much noticed. A trip to Afghanistan with industrial percussion, Afghani instruments, warped processed vocals and even a few unanticipated musical breaks. The nearly fourteen minutes of "Germ of Sorrow 2" takes you through a weird, unbridled 3rd world journey, with a lot of percussive anomalies. Now I’m beginning to grasp the "Drum Jester Devotional" part of the group’s name. Hey, pass that bong please, I need a bit more inspiration...

"Cherries of War" closes out "Bets Ov Vol.1." in a slowly slow musical mantra that seems an appropriate way to end this trip. I find it interesting that the Hop Frog Kollectiv have occasionally hooked up with the Current 93/ Rose McDowall crowd. It’s hard not to like em for that aspect alone, and I can forgive a few missteps if this is their first commercial outing. My advice (if anybody’s listening) would be to cut back a bit on repetitive spoken word samples, and if the songs are going to be trancey and repetitive, at least introduce more interesting elements, or add a couple of breaks. Although this album is a mixed bag, it’s definitely worth a listen. And if you happen to have some G13xSilverHaze, or NY Diesel to put in your hubbly bubbly, it will probably sound even better. I’m guessing their next effort will sound even better still.

I know that this is an old release, but thanks to Infamis, I'm trying to do a sort of Beast Of Prey special reviews set and since this release is still available I'll talk a bit about it. We already talked about Moljebka Pvlse about a month ago because of his latest release for Someplace Else. This album KAUKASUS see Mathias Josefson working on three tracks out of the seven you can find here, tweaking around the sounds provided by Horologium. If you already know him you should know his way of building hypnotic multi layered suites. The tracks made by Horologium are the ones I preferred on this release because they were able to blend dark ambient intuitions using vocal samples, synth pads, acoustic samples and particular percussive sounds, creating in this way an interesting mysterious ambience. The release is inspired by the highest mountains in Europe which have been place of conflicts ever since. The album is dedicated to this magical region, known for its natural beauty and cultural variety.