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Posted 06 June 2006 - 03:18 PM
Hi-res cover: front + back
Artist: Panick (Israel)
Title: Lab-O-Matic
Format: CD (digipack)
Label: Neurobiotic Records (Italy)
Cat. #: NBR CD 018
Distribution: Arabesque
Date: 29 May 2006
Track listing:
01. 06’36” Menace To Society
02. 06’04” Blind Sensations
03. 06’09” Radioshake
04. 05’40” Incsoc
05. 06’10” Lab-O-Matic
06. 06’10” Chronick Candy
07. 07’04” Class-X
08. 06’49” Cap Zion
09. 07’06” Jibjab
10. 07’12” Manic Miner Edit
.m3u-playlist: http://tinyurl.com/p5s4x (all tracks!)
Review:
Vamos a la playa!
Israeli producer Nick Laniado is out with his second album, following the seemingly very popular Rocket Pocket released by Phonokol in 2003. I haven’t heard that album, but I’ve heard and enjoyed Nick’s input on the 2001 Psysex album Hardcore Blastoff… To put it lightly, I’m not a fan of the endless stream of generic full-on coming out of Israel – but luckily there’s still good full-on being produced. Tron’s smashing debut album Existence released by Liquid Records in early 2006 is a good example of brilliantly eclectic full-on being created in other parts of the world. Truth being, I have limited knowledge into the somewhat extensive Neurobiotic back-catalogue, but from what I’ve understood it’s among the better full-on labels… Let’s find out if this release can verify that…
Let me take you thru the tracks…
#01: Menace To Society
The intro is very cool and suspenseful – unfortunately most parts of the actual track are way too predictable and generic for my taste… And I’m not too pleased with the Infected Mushroom-like twirling synth lines either… Yikes, this is not too good a start… Sure, the bridge part has some interesting tweaks, but generally I’m not too impressed…
#02: Blind Sensations
“Video link-up requested!” After the somewhat shaky start, the next track is better… Sure, the bassline is still pretty bland, but the accompanying FX has more staying power and more ‘bite’… There’s an underlying groove here which I really like – and this track will work wonders on both the dance floors and in the living rooms – with the thrilling break-down part being the leading catalyst for just that… Pretty tasty tune!
#03: Radioshake
The next track seems to raise the bar another couple of notches… The pace has quickened and the basslines seems to have seen a little more consideration… The eerie, filtered voice-samples are sweet and the hands-in-the-air summer-festy touch is definitely present here with the massive punch of the ‘climax’ following the break… Maybe even too much, I don’t know… It’s good, but not great you know…
#04: Incsoc
Well, this track is another IM-clone… It may be VERY well-produced and I’m sure it will work absolute wonders on the floor, but it’s still a clone of something I’ve heard before… And don’t even get me started on the bassline… *Yawn*
#05: Lab-O-Matic
“That runner's smarter than we've seen so far! It's quite a catch. Thanks. Do you think it will convert? To convert is its choice to make!” Luckily the title track is much more interesting… The spacy, high-pitched melodies are both deranged and trippy – and the underlying rhythm section is nothing short of phat… A lovely piece of well-crafted full-on that will definitely turn some heads and move some feet!
#06: Chronick Candy
“Like undulant swirling smoke!” This track has some of the same spacey elements that made the previous track so great – and it has a very appealing, almost marching rhythm that I really like… It’s totally trance-inducing and will work absolute wonders on the floor… Sadly it also has some cheesy bits, especially towards the end of the track… They prevent me from hyping this track totally – but it’s still pretty neat…
#07: Class-X
“Irrational impulses!” Next up is another pretty predictable track – after the brief intro and the first stroke of the bassline and the first cord of the melody you’ve basically heard the entire track… Cheese-fest!
#08: Cap Zion
This one is better – without being great… But the intensity level has been raised again and this is sheer burst of energy… Definitely something that will go down well on a sunny dancefloor at the summer festivals… It’s fast-paced, in-your-face sunny funny frolics! Pretty tasty – but somehow it lacks the X-factor that would have elevated it into the awesome category…
#09: Jibjab
It’s pretty much becoming a rule of thumb now, but here’s another not-so-great track… Sure it has interesting parts, but as a whole this just doesn’t *do* enough for me… Style wise this sways away from dancefloor minded full-on into more epic, melodic trance with hints of psy… Sadly it’s a turn for the worse, and as mentioned above this doesn’t really rock my boat…
#10: Manic Miner Edit
“Please stand back from the automated door and wait for the security officer to verify your identity. Before exiting the train, be sure to check your area for personal belongings. Thank you and have a very safe and productive day!” This is a ‘bonus track’ – and it was previously released on the 2005 Neurobiotic compilation Sonica under Laniado’s real first name Nick… And what a track this is! This is highly focussed, action-packed, smile-cracking full-on… Twirling, old-school melodies and dancefloor orientated basslines that makes it hard not to get sucked in… A great, powerful track!
Alright, what we have here is an album with half the tracks being cheesy and predictable – and the other half being pretty good… That ratio is not good enough! Obviously I would have preferred an album packed to the rim with one ‘killargh’ after the other… That’s not the case here, and that’s really a shame! So, this is not the best full-on album I’ve heard in 2005 – but on the other hand it’s not the worst either… Far from it!
It’s no secret, that I am not a fan of boring, predictable, formulated, iconic Israeli neo full-on – and it’s been quite a while since I had a pleasant experience with a full-on CD made in Israel. Luckily Panick isn’t a total loss – coz as my indication of fav’e tracks below shows, there are indeed some great stuff to be found here… I just wish they weren’t so scarce! Also I wish the good tracks were longer. But let me also stress, that as a full-on album this is MILES ABOVE most of the generic, formulaic crap coming out of Israel nowadays… I’ll take this over Vibe Tribe, Dali or… Infected Mushroom (!) ANY day! Full-on fans will dig this – purists should sample it carefully before making the purchase… Either way – enjoy!
Favourites: 2, 5(!), 6, 10(!)
DeathPosture
External links:
Neurobiotic Records: http://www.neurobiotic.com
Discogs: http://www.discogs.com/release/692531
Saiko Sounds: http://tinyurl.com/mvtue
Beatspace: http://tinyurl.com/qgkez
Psyshop: http://tinyurl.com/l7u9r
Chaos: http://tinyurl.com/opkqv
Cisco: http://tinyurl.com/qhwjx
Juno: http://tinyurl.com/nteuu
Play: http://tinyurl.com/nesgd
MultiQuote
Posted 11 December 2006 - 06:30 AM
