Bleep

The year is 1993, a year on from the mainstream breakout of what the green-behind-the-ears would call ‘IDM’. Following the dissolution of their previous venture Jack Trax, Damon D’cruz joined forces with producer J. M. Adkins to form the short-lived label Metatone Recordings. Though their six 12” EPs and sole CD compilation of no-nonsense techno goodness found love among a small but devotional fanbase before disbanding, the limited run discs have since garnered wide appeal on online marketplaces among techno record collectors with a second mortgage.

Cold Blow, in association with Berlin’s AVA. Records, aim to rectify that exclusivity with Electro Music Union, Sinoesin & Xonox Works 1993 - 1994, which gathers a smattering of Adkins-alias choice cuts selected from across Metatone Recordings’ releases; all remastered from the original DAT tapes, wrapped up in a striking 2LP package designed by DJ-producer Damiano von Erckert.

This collection may be an archive of a bygone age of techno, a cherished memory in the minds of those who were in the know, but the robust construction of Sinoesin’s ‘Angels Of Altitude’ parts one and two and Xonox joint ‘Transmission’ yet defy convention more than quarter of a century later. Electro Music Union’s ‘Structures’ 1 - 4, all present on this groundbreaking comp, showcase the breadth of feeling one might experience from the same producer; ebullient bliss one moment, far-flung future escapade the next. As we all know, however, the only superlative that matters is ‘euphoric’. And is it still, after all this time? Absolutely.